Total Drama Reach for the Stars!
by XoXMariah n' SieoreXoX
Summary: Guess who's back with Season 2? Me! And my good pal TotalDramaKingdomHearts, who is co-writing this with me! Tune in folks! With 15 returning characters and epic Aftermaths, this is one season you won't wanna miss! Drama, romance, and hilarity ensues!
1. It Means 'Shut Up', McLean

**What's this? A sequel? Wow. Who would've guessed? Well, me and my good pal TotalDramaKingdomHearts bring to you what the majority of you all have been asking for! :D Read on my lovelies! READ I SAY! ! ! !**

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Chris McLean stands on the Dock of Shame, smiling his pearly white, million dollar dentures. Uh, I mean smile.

"Hello viewers of Canada and beyond!" he says happily as the camera zooms in, "This season, some of our lovely challengers from last season will be joining us at a brand new space headquarters that I had so luckily found!" Chef clears his throat behind him.

"You mean the space HQ that _I _found?" Chris waved him off.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Anywho~, with all the fancy things I made Chef dig up, I was able to make a brand new season! So join us here every week for brand new drama, brand new relationships, all new challenges, and a whopping 2 million dollar prize!" He holds up a large suitcase, a grin on his face. "Ha ha! Who will survive? Who will climb to the top? And at what cost? Find out, right here, on Total. Drama-" all of a sudden, he was hit in the face with a flip-flop, and he fell to the ground. A brown haired girl wearing red skinny jeans and a black tank top walked on screen. She placed the flip-flop back on her foot.

"Hey! What the hell man? I told you to wait for me before you start the show!" Chris stood up and dusted himself off.

"I would have, but then I realized that you would have took up too much me time on screen." she narrowed her eyes at him. "Can I finish now?" She crossed her arms.

"I'm doing it!" she said, standing in front of the camera. She smiled. "Ahem, I, Rosa, am your brand new host this season along with Chrissy boy here. Stay tuned, because when we come back, you get to see which one of your favorite contestants are returning. This is Total. Drama. Reach for the Stars!"

***Theme Song Plays***

Chris is shown next to Rosa and Chef, rubbing his cheek.

"That really hurt, Rosa..." he complained.

"Suck it up." she replied, popping her gum.

"The first boat is here!" Chef announced as a boat began to come towards the dock. Chris removed his hand from his face and smiled at the arriving person. A white-haired boy jumped off the boat, a bored expression on his face and a guitar strapped to his back.

"Looks like last season's winner is the first to arrive! How ya been, Orion?" Orion shrugged.

"The money made life run smoother, but is there really a reason for me to be back here?" Chris holds up a huge stack of paper.

"Yes. It's called a contract." he sticks his thumb out at Rosa.

"Who's that?" Rosa held out her hand. Orion shook it.

"The name's Rosa! Unfortunately, Chris' sister married my dad, so I have the dishonor of being his step-niece...or niece-in-law...or something like that."

"Shut up Rosa, next contestant is here!" she took off her flip-flop, glaring at the back of his head. A dirty blond boy hopped off the boat next.

"Oi! How ya been, Chrissy?" his British accent was thick and his eyes shone with excitement.

"John! Nice to have you ba-ACK!" he shouted loudly as Rosa's footwear came in contact with the back of his head. Rosa replaced her flip-flop and bounced over to the laughing John.

"Nice one!" he said, high-fiving her. She beamed at him.

"Thanks! I'm Rosa! Your new host!"

"_Co-_host!" Chris corrected, rubbing the back of his head. She turned and glared daggers at him, causing him to shut up.

"Um..h-hello?" a small and unsure voice said. Rosa turned back around.

"Hey! I know you! You're Christy!" she said, walking over.

"Yeah," Chris added, "The one who was voted out first." Rosa's flip-flop soared over to him, and he ducked to keep from getting hit in the face. "Ha ha!" when he came back up, he was smacked in the nose with her other one.

"Shut up, McLean!" she shouted before calmly walking Christy over to the other two boys. John wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"Hey, don't worry about Chris, alright Christy? I'm sure you'll get much further this time 'round!" she nodded and smiled up at him and Orion, who was nodding behind him.

"Thanks." the next person to come off the boat was a tan, brown-haired girl. Her hazel eyes carried a bored expression.

"Jada!" Chris said, clapping his hands together. "So glad you could make it!"

"Like I had a choice." she said, her words dripping with sarcasm. He smiled.

"Good point, now go wait over there." Jada walked over to her friends. The next person to jump off the boat was a handsome, tan boy, his blue eyes glistening with anger. Rosa stared at him, ogling over his body. She walked up to him, smiling brightly, a slight blush on her face.

"Hi! I'm Rosa and-"

"I don't care." he growled, walking past her to the rest. Jada glared at him as he walked past her. Chris laughed and put an arm on her shoulder, using her as a rest.

"I see you've made yourself acquainted with Jason! Wow..he does _not _look happy." Rosa glared daggers at him before going to stand next to Chef, a bit embarrassed.

"Assholes." she grumbled under her breath. The next person hopped off the boat, black hair swaying, and purple eyes shining.

"I'm back!" she said with an excited giggle.

"Mickey!" Jada, John, and Orion cheered.

"Annalisia! Glad to have you back!" Chris said, smiling. She walked up to him, snatching his wig off and tossing it into the water.

"Glad to be back Chris!" she said with a laugh before going over to her friends. Rosa snickered. Chris hid behind Chef, trying to avoid the camera.

"INTERN!" he screeched, and a meek-looking guy came and handed him another wig before running off-screen. "New rule!" he shouted, turning towards the campers, "_No one _touches my-"

"Hair?" someone interrupted. Chris turned to see a mass of spiky teal hair.

"And the Ninja Nerd Troy makes his appearance! Still interrupting me I see."

"Still can't grow real hair I see." was his response. Chuckles and snorts ran throughout the crowd of teens. Chris' eye twitched and he points to the others.

"Go." was his simple command. All of a sudden, a Tarzan cry of some sort rang out. Everyone looked around, confused.

"Where is that coming from?" Chef questioned. John smiled widely.

"I think I know, mate!" A flash of brown and white jumped from the trees onto Chef, knocking him hard onto the hardwood dock.

"Madeleine..." Chef groaned begrudgingly as said girl stood on his back.

"Maddie!" John cheered.

"Johnny!" she squealed, running and jumping into his arms. "It's so so so so so so sooooooo good to see you again!"

"Nice to see you too love!"

"Awwwww~!" Jada, Mickey, and Rosa gushed. Jason rolled his eyes.

"And here's the next contestant!" a voice that wasn't Chris' announced. Everyone looked to the beginning of the dock to see yet another familiar face smiling back at them.

"Danny! Finally!" Chris said, sounding relieved and walking up to him. "You're the only normal one that doesn't hate me!" D.P raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah..." he walked past him to Rosa, holding out his hand. "Hello, I'm Danny. You're the only one here that I haven't met yet!" she beams at him and shook his hand.

"Rosa! The new host!"

"_Co-host!_"

"_Cállate_!" she shouted at him.

"In English!"

"It means 'Shut up', McLean." a snobby voice said. Everyone groaned as they heard a click-clack of heels approach them.

"Looks like Ms. Snooty is snootier than ever." Jada said, crossing her arms. Orion rolled his eyes.

"I know what you mean." Christy looked down.

"I hope she doesn't make me lose again..." she said softly. Maddie pulled her in for a sideways hug.

"Don't worry about a thing, Lele! If she tries anything, we'll tie her and hang her upside down over the sharks! Hahaha!"

"Lauren!" Chris said, going over to greet the girl, "How's our A-Type doing on this fine day?"

"Horrid!" she shouted. "The boats are too creaky and I have to compete with those _losers_!" she pointed a polished finger at the rest of the contestants. "Ugh! Can't I at _least _get a private trailer or something? I simply _cannot _sleep in the same cabin as those...those...idiots!"

"Well that's rude." Chris turned to greet a short girl jumping off the boat. "You could at least pretend to tolerate us." the girl walked right past Chris and went straight to Rosa, shaking her hand.

"And you're not rude?" Chris grumbled, feeling rejected, "Hypocrite." Kylie ignored him and continued to smile at Rosa.

"Hi, i'm Kylie! I don't think I've seen you here before. Intern?" Rosa inwardly groaned. As if she'd be an intern..._for Chris. _She shook her head.

"Nope! I'm the new host around here!"

"How many times do I have to say you're my _co-host_?" Chris said, an aggravated look on his face. She gave him a bored expression.

"How many times do I have to say I really don't care?" was her response. Kylie went to stand with the other campers, passing Jason. She glared at him.

"Jason." she said coldly. He grinned at her.

"Hello again, Beautiful. It's been awhile, hasn't it?"

"Fuck you."

"When and where, gorgeous?" he flirted, leaning in to steal a kiss. All of a sudden, he was pulled back.

"Leave her alone." Orion said, glaring at him. Chris and Rosa watched from a distance as the two boys stared each other down, munching on popcorn.

"Drama already?" Chris said, "I love this bunch!"

"Wow, you weren't joking about the drama huh?" Rosa commented. Chris' grin only grew wider.

"Startin' trouble already? Tsk tsk." Everyone turned their attention from the two boys to the new arrival. The boy dusted off his cowboy hat and placed it back on his head.

"Miah!" John and Troy cheered. Chris and Rosa went to greet him.

"How ya been, Chris?" Jeremiah asked, to which Chris shrugged in response. He turned to Rosa and tipped his hat courteously. "I don't think I've had the pleasure of makin' your acquaintance ma'am. I'm Jeremiah." she smiled at him.

"The name's Rosa, and I'm your new host!" Chris groaned behind her, which she ignored.

"Nice to meet ya!" he said, tipping his hat once more before going over to his friends, who bro hugged him.

"Miah! We missed you bro!" Troy said with a smile.

"Yeah," John agreed, "I was worried that ya weren't gonna come!" Jeremiah laughed and put them both in a headlock.

"Course I came! Who else is gon' keep ya outta trouble?" while they had their little reunion, another clack of heels joined them on the Dock of Shame. Lauren, Jada, and Mickey growled at the tan beauty as she whipped off her sunglasses to scan the crowd. Everyone else groaned.

"Bliss!" Chris greeted with a bright smile, "My drama-maker is here!" She growled at him, and walked past Rosa.

"Hi!" she tried to say, "I'm-"

"Ugly." Bliss snapped, walking over to the rest. Rosa began forward to strike at the self proclaimed princess, but was held back by Chef. Bliss stopped in front of Annalisia and Jada. "Well, well, well, they actually let Annaloser and Jadork back in the game? Shocker. Where's little Bitchrice?" Mickey took a step towards her, fuming.

"Say something else, I _dare _you." Jada rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, because she's _totally _scary."

"Please." Bliss scoffed, also rolling her eyes. "You losers are just jealous because _everyone _knows who's winning this season!"

"Who?" Jada said, mocking confusion, "Us?" she put an arm around Mickey's shoulders. "Because I believe that all of us are three _hundred _percent positive that you aren't winning shit." Bliss growled at the duo, and pulled back her fist to punch one of them. But before she could, a hand grabbed hers and pulled her back. She whirled around to greet an aggravated face.

"I really don't have the patience for your bullshit." he growled. Rosa raised an eyebrow.

"I like that kid. What's his name?"

"Ren!" Chris smiled, going over to the boy. "Glad you could join us on this fine day!" Ren narrowed his eyes at him.

"Fuck you, McLean." Chris' smile didn't falter, he just wagged his finger in his face.

"Ah ah ah! No cursing!" Ren rolled his eyes and turned to face Mickey, who had a smile on her face and a slight blush on her cheeks.

"Hey, Ren." she said. He smiled at her and gave her a small peck on her lips.

"Hey, Annalisia." he responded.

"Awwwww~!" Jada gushed. Mickey stuck her tongue out at her friend, who laughed.

"Yo Ren!" Orion and Danny shouted, coming to fist-bump their ex-teammate.

"Sup guys?" while those three had their little reunion, the final arrival...well...arrived. He silently stepped on the dock, staring at everyone with unblinking black eyes.

"Eyrik!" Mickey shouted, waving at her friend, who gave her an acknowledging head nod. Lauren and Bliss rolled their eyes.

"The antisocial dork is here." Lauren said, a look of disgust on her face. Mickey shot her a look.

"Why don't you shut the hell up?" she spat.

"Why don't you hide your head in the sand? Your face hurts my eyes." Chris ignored their argument and turned to Eyrik.

"Nice to see you, Eyrik!" Rosa stood behind Chris, watching Eyrik with cautious brown eyes.

"He's weird looking." she whispered.

"I know." he whispered back, keeping on his smile. Eyrik heard, but ignored these comments and made his way to the others. Chris faced the camera and smile.

"Well, there you have it folks! 15 contestants in it to win it for 2. Million. Dollars!" Rosa bumped him off of the screen and smiled at it.

"And if you think this is just some normal season, guess again! Pull the lever, Chef, if you please!" Chef, in his own little corner of the world, pulled a leevr sticking out of the ground. All of a sudden, the island began to shake.

"What the bloody hell is going on? ! ?" John shouted, Maddie, clinging to his back.

"I don't know!" Troy shouted, "But I don't like it!"

"McLean, fix this!" Bliss shouted.

"Now!" Jason agreed.

"Would you all just shut the hell up?" Ren shouted, aggravated.

"Look!" Christy shouted, her voice finally rising above the noise. She pointed towards the center of the island, where a building of some sort began rising from the ground. The island finally stopped shaking.

"Who told you to tell Chef to pull the lever?" Chris yelled at Rosa, "That's _my _line!" Rosa shrugged

"Oh well, sucks for you Chrissy." she looked back to the camera. "I don't know about last season, but I'll tell you right now, that _this _season is gonna be the _best _season _ever!"_ Chris pushed her out of the way to get his camera time.

"Who will take the loot? Who will get the boot? Who will rise above? And who will fall below? Find out! Right here! On Total. Drama-"

"Reach for the Stars!"


	2. An Alliance is an Alliance

Rosa led the fifteen contestants into the main square of the island, where they were to find the same rundown cabins from last season. A fuming Chris sulked behind them. "As always, you'll need a place to sleep," Rosa began. "And for that, you'll need teams!"

A cheer went up. Bliss rolled her eyes. "Who needs teams when we know I'm winning anyways…"

As pretty much everyone else shot her daggers with their eyes, Rosa went on. "So for Team StarKid, we'll have…"

"Troy!"

"Awesome!" Troy yelled.

"Orion!" Ori walked over and the two fist bumped.

"Lauren!" Lauren walked over with a snooty demeanor to her, and both Orion and Troy were visibly disappointed.

"Maddie!"

"WOOOOO!" she yelped as she ran over and leapt onto the two boys as Lauren haughtily rolled her eyes.

"Christy!" Christy meekly walked over and was warmly greeted by her new team.

"Kylie!"

"I guess this is good," Kylie muttered.

"And… Jason!"

Jason smugly walked over, winking at Christy and Lauren and blowing Kylie a kiss. Troy and Maddie had to restrain her from leaping on him.

"Which means, on Team Extraterrestrial, we'll have…"

"Mickey, and Jada!" The two best friends eagerly embraced each other, glad to be on the same team once again.

"Ren!" With the slightest traces of a grin on his face, Ren walked over and slyly linked hands with Mickey.

"Bliss!"

"Boo!" shouted Mickey and Jada; Bliss stuck her tongue out at them, unfazed.

"Danny!" He fist bumped his new teammates.

"John!"

"Hullo darlings!" John said in an exaggerated British accent, making his team crack up.

"Eyrik!" He calmly walked over and Mickey smiled at him.

"And Jeremiah!"

"Awesome!" he called as he high-fived John. Jada smiled over at Miah and he winked; she looked away quickly and blushed slightly.

"Now get acquainted with your new teams! We'll call you when the challenge is ready," Rosa added with a smile.

She walked away with Chris following behind her, muttering things like, "My show… Damn girl… My lines…"

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Side***

Mickey and Bliss sat on beds on opposite sides of the cabin, staring each other down. Jada had gone to go get the boys for a team meeting.

"You're such a loser," Bliss said with her usual sense of bossiness.

"You're such a bitch," Mickey fired back.

Before it could fully erupt, Jada walked in with John, Danny, Eyrik, Miah, and Ren. "Just in time for the show," she muttered sarcastically. She was, of course, Noah's cousin.

Ren instinctively walked to Mickey's side. Anger in his voice, he said, "Leave her alone, Bliss."

"And what if I don't?"

Ren clenched his fist. To try and brighten the mood, John stepped forward. "Let's start this meeting, hey! And not totally kill each other before the first challenge, I mean!"

"He's right," Miah interjected. "We're a team. We've all had differences in the past," he added, pointedly staring at Mickey and Bliss, "But we'll need each other to survive. So what say we put aside our differences. At least temporarily," he added quickly as Mickey opened her mouth to argue.

"Fine…" she muttered, and Jada grinned.

"Attention tweensters!" came Chris' voice from the loudspeaker. "Meet in the big building that sprung up from the ground! Pronto!"

"We better go, then," John sighed. Everyone nodded and filed out, but when Bliss made to leave Danny held her back.

"What is it…" Bliss muttered nervously.

Danny shrugged. "You've got no friends here. Maybe I could help you fit in with the others. Be a friend."

Bliss intended to vehemently deny this offer of kindness, but then stopped to consider her game. _It might be useful to work with this loser_, she thought. "Whatever," is what she said to Danny, and the two hurried off after their team.

**Confessionals:**

**Danny: By gaining her trust, I'll be able to eventually get vengeance for those she tormented last season. Until then, it's good to have an alliance.**

**Bliss: Ugh. These losers, I swear. But an alliance is an alliance.**

**Annalisia: I can't can't can't can't can't can't _stand_ Bliss! She's first voted off if I have anything to say about it.**

***Team StarKid, Boys' Side***

Orion and Troy were talking about some of Troy's ninja tricks with Jason flexing his muscles on his bunk when Maddie, Kylie, Lauren, and Christy walked in. "Meeting _tiiiiiiime_!" Maddie sang to the amusement of the others.

In her most diplomatic voice, Christy started the meeting. "Um, well, it's kind of obvious there's some… uh, problems on our team…"

As she was saying this, Kylie was glaring angrily at Jason, who in turn was trying to flirt with Lauren. Orion tapped her, and when their eyes met, he gently shook his head. "Not now," he mouthed.

"Of course there's problems, quiet girl," Lauren pointed out. "But as long as we don't lose, we'll be fine! I mean, last season's winner is here! Duh!"

Troy nodded. "Yeah. And plus, even if we all hate each other, we're still a pretty solid physical team."

"Team StarKid!" Maddie shouted, and despite the animosity in the room, everyone soon took up the cry, even Lauren and, reluctantly, Jason.

Soon, they all heard Chris calling them to the challenge. Everyone reluctantly filed out. "Spirits up!" Christy timidly shouted, trying to keep her team rallied.

**Confessionals:**

**Christy: I want to prove that I'm an asset to the team, so I'm doing my best to be supportive and more vocal than last time.**

**Orion: At first I thought it was a nice gesture for Lauren to point out we were a strong team. But then I realized she was signaling me out – like, if we lost, last season's winner is on the chopping block.**

**Jason: Forget about the money, it's time to play the babe game. Now Lauren may be a bitch, but at least she's hot…**

The teams walked into the big building and were greeted by Chris, smiling in all his grandeur. Rosa was nowhere in sight.

"Hey, where's the perky new co-host?" Danny asked.

"Let's just say she's taking a bit of a… break… hehe…" Chris replied.

***Locked Storage Closet***

"McLean! Let me out! Let me out! I'm the co-host!"

***Contestants and Chris***

"So what's this first challenge going to be, Chris?" Christy asked for her team. After being voted out first last time, she was eager to prove herself in challenges this time around.

"It's time for… Zero Gravity Dodgeball!" Chris shouted.

"Awesome!" Troy exclaimed. As he'd proved last season, dodgeball was his game.

Chris lead the fifteen contestants into a chamber, with a red line dividing the court. "StarKid, over to the right! Extraterrestrial, over to the left! Now, here's how the game is going to be played. We turn off the gravity, so you'll be floating in midair. The dodgeballs, however, will not be affected! Ha!"

"But that's not fair!" Annalisia pointed out.

"Nobody gives diddlysquat about fair…" Chef grumbled as he walked in carrying a sack of dodgeballs. He put ten of them along the red line.

"Take your positions!" Chris called out.

On StarKid's side, the team had reached a consensus. "Just give all the balls to Troy," Christy summed up. "He's the best on our team!"

Jason, however, wasn't pleased. "Come on, forget the Ninja Nerd. I'm so much better at sports!" He flexed his muscles and winked at Lauren.

**Confessionals:**

**Lauren: Do I like Jason? No. Is he hot? Yes. Can I manipulate him? Yes.**

**Kylie: That boy… ARGH! He gets on my nerves so much!**

"At this point, I trust Troy to carry the team more than you," Orion commented, and he and Jason had a stare-down. There was no love lost between them.

"Let's just be awesomeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" Maddie cried.

With the Extraterrestrials, there was some dispute over strategy. "Let's just knock them all out!" John said. "Short, sweet, and most of all, to the point!" he added, grinning.

"Or we could focus on their strongest points," Danny commented mysteriously. "Troy. Jason. Maddie. All who could flourish in this challenge. Orion, too."

"Yeah!" Jada nodded in agreement. "If it's us against Lauren, Christy, and Kylie… no offense, but we couldn't lose!"

"Whatever," Bliss commented with a yawn. "Don't expect me to help." When Danny nudged her, she added, "Um, I mean, let me help in any way I can."

Jada and Miah looked nervously at each other. Bliss? Being..._nice_? They couldn't believe it.

Ren just shrugged. "Dodgeball really isn't my thing."

"At least try," Mickey replied with a smile.

"GAME TIME!" Chef yelled out, and all of a sudden, fifteen teenagers got lifted into the air.

**Confessionals:**

**Troy: Awesome!**

**Jeremiah: This is the kinda daredevil stuff I live for!**

Troy, Jason, and Maddie went diving, or more like swimming, through the zero-gravity to reach the dodgeballs. Troy edged out ahead, but Eyrik was close up on the other side.

"Sorry, Talkative, but this is one challenge I can't lose!" Troy called out, his ego shining. And right then, Eyrik reached the ball first and threw it at Troy.

"OUT!" Chef exclaimed.

"Thanks so much, Troy…" Orion muttered.

"SHUT UP ORION!"

Eyrik gathered two more balls, passing one to Jada and keeping one for himself. While the rest of their team struggled dealing with zero gravity, these two excelled.

"We've got this one in the bag, Eyrik!" Jada called out. Eyrik nodded in agreement.

Maddie, however, disagreed. She held up three balls with a devious grin on her face. Passing one to Jason, she quickly took aim at Jada, who deflected it with her own ball. "Hey!"

"Oopsiesssssss!" was Maddie's response as she tossed another ball right at Jada's head; she ducked out of the way in the nick of time, and the ball instead collided with an upside-down John who was struggling to find his balance. "Sorry Johnny boy!"

"OUT!" Chef yelled at the Brit.

"I'm coming, I'm coming…" John muttered, "Sure did miss his bright personality…"

Mickey and Danny eventually made their way to join Eyrik and Jada, and all four grabbed onto a ball.

"Come on, dorks!" Jason yelled back to his team. He threw a ball at Mickey, barely missing, and picked up another one. "Pick up the pace!"

"Boy, with that kind of encouragement, how can we not succeed!" Orion exclaimed. Kylie snorted, attempting to conceal her laughter; despite her progress in dealing with males, she still didn't fully trust or like any of the ones in the game.

Christy made her way to the front lines and Maddie passed her a ball. "General Fluffyworthiness, attack the western-most squadron and we'll flank them with the explosions of the raging battalion!"

"…What?"

"Watch out!" came a devilish cry from Jeremiah, who'd picked up the ball that had hit John; he aimed it at Christy, who dodged out of the way. Rolling her eyes as it came towards her, Lauren caught it in perfectly manicured hands.

"OUT, country maggot! Nice save, snooty maggot!"

"Please," Lauren commented, rolling her eyesy. She took aim carefully and tossed a ball; it soared and collided directly with Bliss' face.

"HEY!" yelled the queen bee.

"Bitchy maggot, OUT! On a roll, snooty maggot!"

"How can you play like this?!" Orion asked in shock.

Lauren shook her head. "Gosh, loser. Just because I'm rich and beautiful doesn't mean that I'm incapable of performing! It's just like golf, really. You shouldn't judge people by how they look." The irony was apparently lost on her.

Jason took aim at Eyrik, but missed again. "Silent Sherlock, throw your precious little ball already! I know you really want to have balls, but…"

A ball thrown by Mickey came flying by and barely missed Jason. "No one should be treated that way," she said to Eyrik, who has calmly shaking his head. As if Jason's insults could get to him.

Maddie threw another ball and it almost hit Jada; but while she was dodging, Christy's ball hit her square in the face. "Sorry!" she called over.

"Sarcastic maggot! OUT!"

It was now 6-4, and Team Extraterrestrial was down. "We need to do something, fast," Danny murmured. He locked eyes with Eyrik and it was as if a silent plan formed between them.

"Now," Eyrik spoke softly. He threw his ball and it caught Christy off-guard, and then rebounded to knock out Maddie as well before Orion caught it.

"Last place maggot, Crazy maggot, Quiet maggot! All of you are OUT!"

"Sorry, Eyrik," Orion taunted. While he was distracted, Danny's ball grazed his leg.

"Musical maggot! OUT!"

In a matter of seconds, it had gone down to 3-3. Kylie, Lauren, and Jason against Mickey, Danny, and Ren. Mickey and Lauren then got each other out at the same time.

"Snooty maggot and Pranky maggot, OUT!"

"C'mon, hot stuff," Jason flirted. "Help me out here."

"As if," Kylie rebuffed, moving to get another ball.

**Confessional:**

**Danny: They can't possibly win if they keep arguing. Awesome for us, of course!**

Danny tossed his ball at the distracted Kylie; seeing the ball out of her peripheral vision, however, she quickly turned and caught it.

"Normal maggot! OUT!"

This left Jason and Kylie, each holding two balls, against Ren, who had none.

"We're doomed," John commented, shaking his head.

"You can do this, Ren!" Mickey yelled in an attempt at encouraging, punching John in the arm.

"I think our odds look pretty good," Christy said to her team.

"All thanks to me!" Troy pointed out.

Orion, with a laugh, smacked him upside the head. "Not even Ninja Nerd."

"So sorry you're going to be the first one voted out," Jason laughed.

Ren rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

Both Jason and Kylie threw their balls at the same time, and in something nobody saw coming, he dodged Jason's ball, caught Kylie's, and turned around before anyone could react and forcefully threw it into Jason's face. Some blood came out of his nose, wickedly floating in the air.

"Short maggot! Attractive maggot! OUT!"

**Confessionals:**

**Jason: Chef thinks I'm attractive?**

**Christy: What… just happened?**

**Ren: Whatever.**

**Jeremiah: Darnit! Never woulda thought he had it in 'im!**

"Jerky maggot! VICTORY!" Chef called over. As the zero-gravity went down, he walked over and saluted him. "Good job, soldier."

Chris smiled at the contestants. "Team Extraterrestrial – Safe! Team StarKid – You'll have to vote someone out tonight! Now go!"

As they were leaving, Rosa walked in, sweating. "What? Did I miss it? NO!"

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

"Dude, that was seriously awesome!" John exclaimed, punching the air.

Jeremiah agreed with a big grin. "Partner, that was too good! You should've seen Jason's face!"

Danny, initially distant from the celebrations, excitedly leapt onto Ren's back. "Awesome job Ren!"

"Cool. Now get off of my back or I'll kill you."

As the boys laughed, even Eyrik cracked the tiniest hints of a grin.

***Team StarKid, Girls' Cabin***

The seven teens were scattered around the room. Orion and Troy sat next to each other on the bed, with Jason standing off to the side; Maddie hung upside down off the top of the other bed; Lauren stood in the doorway; and Christy and Kylie sat on the floor.

"That sucked," Jason said coldly.

"Now one of us has to be eliminated…" Christy said silently.

Lauren shook her head. "Obviously either Troy or you. Maybe even Orion too. Braggarts and losers is all."

"Hey!" both Orion and Troy shouted.

"I'm no braggart!" Troy exclaimed angrily.

"He may be a braggart," Orion added, "But he's still an asset! It should be _you_ going home!"

Lauren rolled her eyes. "At least I performed well today."

Jason grinned. "Why not crazy Maddie though?

"Because I had soooooooooo much fun!" Maddie sung. She made some of the others laugh.

**Confessionals:**

**Kylie: Maddie may not be the strongest teammate, but at least she's entertaining.**

"Take out Jason," Kylie said cruelly.

Jason shook his head, but it was Lauren who leapt to his defense. "Vote us out because we're mean and popular and attractive? Sure, go for it. But like it or not we performed the best today. Better than an egotist or a rally girl or a sarcastic loser or a sexist or a crazy girl. Let's hit the beach, Jase." Jason nodded and the two left the cabin.

"Gah! She gets on my nerves so much," Orion commented.

"But maybe she's right…" Christy replied. After all, even if she _did_ try to help her team, she still ended up failing.

"C'mon, beautiful," Troy said flirtily. "Don't let the wicked witch of the bitch get to you."

Maddie jumped off the bed. "Come on Lele! Let's go play some, cheer you up!"

She grabbed Christy by the hand and led her out of the cabin, with a grinning Troy eagerly following. Kylie meant to follow, but Orion held her back. "What do you want?" she asked with contempt in her voice.

"I know what you're going through."

"How could you?"

Orion shrugged. "I've been hurt before too. Badly. But hey, it doesn't help to stay angry. All it does is make things worse for you in the end. Just try and let it go. And if you ever need to talk to someone… I'm here."

He gave a small smile and left the cabin and a surprised Kylie behind. "Boys…" she muttered.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

Jada and Mickey sat staring at Bliss. "Ugh. The least you could've done is try," Jada called over to her.

Bliss rolled her eyes. "We won anyways, so who cares what I did? Gosh, losers."

"We're supposed to be a team!" Mickey said in exasperation. "Stop being such a bitch and think about the bigger picture for once."

The 'bigger picture' comment made her think of what Danny had said to her. _Maybe making friends is the ticket to victory_, she thought. After some consideration, she said, "Um, I'm, uh… sorry?" She then got up and left, almost physically sick at saying those words.

Jada and Mickey stared at each other in shock. "What kind of alien has Chris replaced her with?" She asked in shock.

"Not yet! Chris exclaimed, popping up from out of nowhere and startling the two girls to death. "Alien challenge isn't for a few more weeks! Anyways, who will get voted off? Who will form friendships? Will the villains take control of this game? Tune in to find out!"

He just stood there smiling. "Um, how'd you get in here?" Jada asked.

* * *

**So there's our first challenge! Team StarKid – Orion, Troy, Jason, Lauren, Christy, Maddie, and Kylie – send in your votes! Please PM them to TotalDramaKingdomHearts. Thank you! Wow...I think this is turning out quite nicely... ^_^**


	3. Plenty of Time to Smoke Em'

Later that night, a grinning Chris stood at his regular Campfire Ceremony post. Team StarKid was gathered together in front of him; Maddie, Kylie, Troy, Ori, and Christy sat together on one side while Lauren and Jason stayed on the other.

"Welcome, boys –"

"And girls!" Troy finished.

Chris shot him a glare before continuing. "Your team lost today. Big time. So now one of you is about to be voted off. For good! And you can never return… ever."

"Yawn," Lauren mocked. "Get on with it."

Chris shot her an annoyed look before continuing. "This season, if or when you're voted off, you must walk down the Dock of Shame, climb the Stairs of Loserdom, and board the Shuttle of Failures, where you will promptly be flown off of this island. As in _forever._" He let them sink it in for a few seconds.

**Confessional:**

**Troy: It's almost worth getting eliminated just to ride that thing! Not like I'll ever be riding it, though.**

"Now, when I call your name –"

"You will receive a marshmallow, be safe, if you don't receive one you're gone, blah blah blah," Troy finished. As Chris shot him another glare, Orion smacked him upside the head.

"Jackass…" he muttered, rubbing his head and causing Christy and Kylie to stifle laughs.

"LANGUAGE!" Chris exclaimed in a fit of rage, catching the others off guard. He regained his composure and continued. "If I call your name, then you're safe!"

"Christy!"

"Whew," Christy sighed in relief, walking over to get her marshmallow.

"Maddie!"

"Woohoo!" Maddie exclaimed, tumbling over to Chris.

"Jason!"

Jason stood up smugly. "Of course."

"Kylie!"

"Awesome," she said, getting her tasty treat. While Lauren continued her snooty act, appearing bored, Orion and Troy nervously exchanged quick glances. Could one of them be going home tonight?

**Confessionals:**

**Orion:** **Troy's a real bro. It'd suck for him to be going, but it'd suck more for me to go! I mean, I know I won last season, but 2 _million _dollars? No way can I pass that up.**

"…Orion!"

Ori smiled softly, bumped knuckles with Troy, and walked over to the other safe contestants.

Chris stared at Lauren and Troy. Lauren was still unfazed about being in the hot seat, while Troy was growing nervous. "Troy! You've got a huge ego and you were the first one out in a challenge you continually went around saying you would win. Lauren! You may be a certifiable bitch but you were still a top-notch performer today. The contestant who is _safe_ is…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"(wow. Suspenseful much?)

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Both of you!"

"WHAT?!" both Troy and Lauren exclaimed, rising from their stumps in shock.

Chris devilishly grinned. "Yup! Both of you are 100%, totally, completely safe… for tonight, at least! Turns out this challenge was a _reward_ challenge!"

**Confessionals:**

**Christy: As soon as the fears of being voted out first were gone, here they are, right back again…**

**Jason: This is not cool at all. I was so looking forward to watching that smug nerd leave for good.**

Team StarKid walked back to their cabins, all surprised at the sudden turn of events. Maddie ran ahead of them, dancing and twirling around.

"_But of all these friends and lovers, there is no one compares with you…_"

Orion and Troy walked off to the side. "I thought for sure Lauren was a goner," Orion started.

Troy shrugged. "It wouldn't have been me, I'm sure of it."

"But this definitely puts things in a different place."

"What do you mean?" Kylie asked suspiciously as she joined into the conversation.

Orion shrugged. "This ceremony leaves some people knowing what could've happened. Makes them desperate. And desperate people do desperate things."

Troy nodded. "Well said."

**Confessional:**

**Kylie: I feel like those boys are up to something…**

"_Though I know I'll never lose affection…_" Maddie continued singing.

Out from his cabin came John, finishing the verse. "_For people and things that went before._"

The two slowly grew closer together, singing in harmony. "_I know I'll often stop and think about them, in my life I love you more._" The two pulled in for a kiss.

"Aw!" Mickey and Jada gushed, following the sounds of voices.

"Ew, loser love," Jason mocked.

"You're blinkered, mate," John replied as he and Maddie shared another kiss.

Bliss, Miah, Eyrik, Danny, and Ren came out of their cabin as well. With a suspicious gleam in his eye, Danny asked, "Don't you guys have one contestant too many?"

"Reward challenge," Christy explained.

Eyrik nodded. He'd only suspected as much. Tempermental Ren, however, didn't take things so smoothly. "You guys lost," he growled. "This isn't fair."

"Calm down, partner," Jeremiah said, putting a hand on Ren's shoulder. A fiery glare from Ren had him nervously pull it off. "We'll have plenty of time to smoke 'em. Now let's get some shut-eye!"

"Here, here!" Danny and John cheered. With one last kiss goodnight to Madeleine, John followed the rest of the boys into his cabin.

"They're all idiots," Bliss muttered. Noticing Lauren and Jason staring at her, she put on a fake smile and walked back into her cabin.

"This isn't going to be a fun night," Mickey said.

Jada nodded in agreement. "Let the sleepover begin!"

**Confessionals:**

**Jeremiah: I feel like Ren's being too harsh. It's just a game, and games are meant to be played with fun!**

**Danny: I'd have loved to get more information out of the other team, but now isn't the time.**

**Bliss: If one girl in this cabin doesn't end up strangled to death, it'll be a miracle.**

**John: Maddie… oh, sweet Maddie! Why are we separated, love?**

Maddie, Christy, and Lauren all decided to turn in for the night. Jason and Troy did as well; Troy asked Orion if he was coming, but seeing Kylie sitting on the stoop by herself, he decided against it.

"Hey," he said, cautiously approaching her. When she didn't send him off, he took it as an invitation to sit down. "You voted for Jason, I'd imagine?"

Kylie laughed, but there was no mirth. "No, I definitely want an arrogant jerk who screwed me over on the team."

Orion took joy out of her sarcasm. "Well, if that's the case." Kylie laughed a little bit. "Hey, listen. I know there's bad blood between you two, but just… try and watch out for yourself, okay? I'd hate to see this grudge drag you down."

"You speak as if from experience," Kylie noted.

Orion stared at her. "I am speaking from experience."

Hearing an argument erupting between Troy and Jason in the cabin, Orion took that as a cue to leave. He waved goodbye and walked into his cabin, leaving Kylie alone.

**Confessionals:**

**Kylie: I still don't fully trust, or really feel that I should trust, Orion. But there's something that strikes me as sincere.**

**Orion: I don't open up to people much, but I think Kylie needs to find someone she can talk to, be open with. She's probably cool underneath all that 'boys are all idiots' act**.

* * *

**Well, there's the first elimination chapter! Thoughts? Questions? Concerns? Ideas? Everything is welcome! Much obliged my lovlies!**

**And in case you're all curious, here are the votes of the night!**

**_Votes:_**

**Troy:** I suppose that my vote is for Lauren.

**Orion:** Interesting things to consider, but I vote for Lauren.

**Jason:** I vote for that smug nerd Troy – the sooner his ass is gone, the better.

**Madeleine:** Lalalalala, happy happy… it's pretty awful we're losing someone already. I know I'll often stop and think about them… I vote for Troy! He's a ninja, and everyone knows ninjas are evil! DOWN WITH THE EVIL NINJAS!

**Christy:** Um… I guess I vote for Troy. I mean, he was the first out…

**Lauren:** Orion! Duh.

**Kylie:** Jason. That bastard…

**Reviews are appreciated!~**


	4. All's Fair in Lasers and War

Chris stood gleaming on the Dock of Shame. "Last time, on Total Drama Reach for the Stars! Our 15 returning contestants arrived on the island and were split into their two teams, where, to no one's surprise, arguments and tensions were brought up! But, to the surprise of many, during the challenge, Ren ended up in a spectacular display of performance and won the challenge for his team! During elimination, it was between Troy and Lauren, but in the end it was revealed to be a reward challenge! And through this all, new alliances and friendships were formed. So what will happen this time on Total! Drama! Reach for the Stars!"

***Mess Hall***

John and Ori got on line for breakfast; it was early, and besides them, Troy was the only one in the mess hall. Chef glared angrily at both of them. "British maggot! Musical maggot! Take your damn food!"

"As if we could eat something this dodgy," John muttered. In response, Chef threw a knife at his head. The Brit ducked quickly and it soared, sticking its point into the wall. "Oi!"

Ori sat down next to Troy. "Hey, I wanted to run something by you," he said.

"What's up?" Troy replied, wondering what was up.

"It's pretty obvious we both had the same vote, and we're both friends."

"Yeah. So we definitely have an alliance, right?"

Ori grinned. "Definitely."

**Confessionals:**

**Troy: He's physical, we get along, we share common hatreds – it only makes sense for an alliance.**

**John: I swear, Cheffie has it out for little ol' me…**

Kylie than came in, got her food, and sat right across from Ori and Troy. The two boys exchanged glances, not expecting this.

"Good morning, sweetheart," Troy replied flirtatiously. Orion smacked him across from the head.

Kylie stared him down with fire in her eyes.

**Confessional:**

**Kylie: I tried to give these boys a chance. It didn't work out so well.**

Bit by bit, the other contestants began filing in. Maddie and Christy sat with each other close to their teammates, and Lauren and Jason ended up much farther away. Ren, Mickey, Jada, and Jeremiah sat with each other, while John sat with Danny. Eyrik and Bliss both sat alone.

With Ren, Mickey, Jada, and Jeremiah, Miah was just finishing up a story. Taking a swig from his black coffee, he said, "And in the end the dog still had its nose stuck in the fish's mouth, and my hand was stuck to the fence with whipped cream all over my pants! Oh, that was a good day."

Mickey and Jada laughed hysterically, while Ren rolled his eyes.

**Confessional:**

**Ren: I just really can't stand Jeremiah. It's like he gets on my nerves just without even trying. He's so damn annoying.**

**Bliss: I'm surrounded by all these losers! Being nice to them is just going to be _impossible_.**

"Oh no, not whipped cream," Ren commented cynically.

Miah apparently didn't pick up on the rudeness, grinning wildly. "I know, man! Stuffs a pain to wash out!"

Mickey smiled and stood up. "We're going to go get seconds," she stated, pulling a reluctant Ren up. "You guys want anything?"

Jada shrugged, but Miah asked if they could get him some more coffee. As soon as they were out of earshot, he turned to Jada and said, "You sure do look beautiful today."

Jada looked from side to side, trying to figure out who he was talking to. "Me? Do you mean me? Or some invisible girl who doesn't have a boyfriend? Or was that some single guy hitting on me?"

**Confessional:**

**Jeremiah: I consider myself to be an excellent judge of when people are being sarcastic to me.**

"Trixie knows that me and her ain't exclusive," Jeremiah replied, shrugging. "And, honestly, if me and her hadn't ended up… I woulda came after you."

Despite herself, Jada found herself blushing. "Well, me and Rain are most _certainly_ exclusive."

"For now, at least," the country boy replied with a smirk. He loved a challenge. Jada made a face, but decided not to retaliate. I mean, what would she say?

John, meanwhile, was trying to have a conversation with Danny, but found it increasingly difficult to find anything in common with the mysterious, aloof boy. "Um, do you like the Beatles, mate?"

"They're okay."

"You're a right fit of sunshine."

Danny smirked. "I get that a lot."

"You know, you always seem deep in thought," John pointed out. "What are those dark, mysterious thoughts of yours, eh?"

"Just focusing on the game," was all that Danny would say, and then he went back to his food.

Mickey and Ren were walking back to their table when Annalisia accidentally tripped; Ren managed to catch her, but Jeremiah's coffee went flying and ended up all over Bliss. Silence fell over the room as everyone stared. The Queen Bee rose from her seat slowly and appeared as if she was going to explode on Mickey, but instead said, "This was an accident. I'm going to go wash off." Bliss calmly walked out of the cafeteria, and some people swore they heard her throwing up from acting so nice.

"She's even scarier when she's kind," Christy whispered.

Eyrik was concerned about Bliss being nice. _What is she up to?_ He wondered to himself. Noticing Danny staring over at the incident with a slight grin, he thought, _And what role does Danny Peterson play in it?_

**Confessional:**

**Danny: Bliss is heeding my advice and being nice. This is definitely a good step forward in my plans.**

**Annalisia: I highly doubt that Bliss has had a miraculous change of heart, that bitch. She's up to something…**

After Bliss walked in, now dried off, she took a seat next to Danny. Before any conversation, however, Chris and Rosa walked in. "Challenge time, kiddies!" Rosa called out.

Chris glared at her. "Really? That's my favorite line. Must you take everything away from me?"

"That's my job!" Rosa replied with a grin. "Now, who wants to know what the challenge for today is!"

There was silence. Someone started coughing and muttered, "You suck."

Rosa looked around the room angrily. "Challenge! For this challenge, it's a game of laser tag!"

"Wow, how exciting!" Ren mocked.

Rosa glared at him before perkily continuing. "You'll get goggles, a vest, and of course, a laser gun. Team StarKid's color is purple, and Team Extraterrestrial's color is green. When you're shot, your vest will light up that color, meaning that you've been eliminated from the challenge. You'll be competing in a maze full of smoky rooms and alien pop-ups, with one alien in particular hunting you down."

At this, Chef Hatchet walked out in his alien costume from Total Drama Action. "'Sup, creatures?" he asked darkly. Both Orion and John shuddered violently, having had previous experiences of working with Chef in challenges.

"The first team to lose all of its members will be sentenced to elimination tonight. Got it?" Still nobody said anything. "I get the feeling you guys don't like me much," Rosa said.

Before anyone could answer, Chris took charge. "Let's go, kiddies! Into our big space challenge building we go!"

As the contestants filed out, Danny got up to Rosa. "With whatever the others may say, I personally like you." Rosa blushed a bit.

"W-Whatever..." she mumbled, walking away. D.P smiled a bit and followed.

***Alien Laser Tag Maze***

Team Extraterrestrial stood together. The two teams had been separated and put at opposite sides of the maze, and would have to find each other to win.

"Let's try and start a winning streak!" Annalisia said enthusiastically. "We're a great team to win!"

"Yes, team, we are good and full of strong, awesome people!" Bliss said, and then started spasming. Her body was rejecting every attempt she made at being nice.

Ren shrugged. "Whatever."

Over on Team StarKid's side, there was some strategizing going on. "We should do the buddy system," Christy said. "It's safer that way."

"Dibs on Troy!" Ori called. The two bros bumped knuckles.

"Me and Jase, duh," Lauren said, playfully tickling Jason's chin.

**Confessionals**

**Lauren: No way do I want to end up dating Jason! But he's a guy, and I'm hot and manipulative. He'll be my little puppet.**

"I'll team up with you, if that's okay," Christy said to Kylie.

Kylie smiled. "Sure, Christy. Two girls are _much _better than two boys any day."

That left Maddie on her own. "_All by myself…_" she started singing.

"She'll be better by herself anyways," Jason pointed out. "She's crazy. We'd just get in her way."

All of a sudden the speakers went up and Chris yelled out, "Let the 76th annual Hunger Games begin!"

"Oh, god!" Lauren moaned. "That's so cheesy!"

***Somewhere in the Maze***

Jeremiah had initially been working with Danny and Eyrik, but in one of the smoky rooms he'd gotten separated. "Here, StarKids… here, boys and girls…"

"NEVER!" came a female's scream.

"Maddie!" Jeremiah exclaimed and quickly tumbled off to the side as a laser came shooting right for him, barely missing. It was somewhat dark and he couldn't tell where she was yet. "Show yourself, pardner!"

Instead of a response, Maddie laughed manically and shot several times in a row. Using all of his daredevil techniques, he swiveled, ducked, and rolled out of the way. Smirking, he commented, "You sure are fixin' to get shot, I reckon!"

"You'll never take me, hick boy!" Maddie yelled. "_Never!_"

Going on the offensive now, Jeremiah shot twice, trying to get a feel for where she was hiding. He heard some steps run off to his left and readjusted his aim. "You sure are making things quite ornery for me, Madeleine." He shot once more; not hearing her feet move, he'd assumed she had ducked. He took another shot, slightly lower, and a purple light came up.

"_No!_" Maddie exclaimed dramatically, falling to her knees. She'd been bested.

***Somewhere else in the Maze***

Orion and Troy walked back to back, covering each other. They both jumped when they heard a big cannon's boom. "What was that?" Troy asked.

As if in response to his question, a purple image of Maddie came up on the ceiling. "Looks like the Hunger Games are really picking up," Orion commented sarcastically. Suddenly, both boys heard some heavy footsteps coming toward them. Ori's eyes widened. "Does that sound like…"

"Chef?" Troy finished. With a grin, he said, "Yup." The two boys locked eyes for a second before Troy whispered, "Run."

His friend took off faster than he'd ever seen him before. Chuckling, he took a few steps before a laser passed right in front of him. Raising his gun and ducking down, he said, "Who dares to mess with the Grand Ninja Troy?"

"Us," was a simple response that came. Danny and Eyrik walked slowly towards him and both shot at the same time. Pulling a matrix, Troy bent backwards, and during this process fired, barely avoiding Danny and Eyrik.

**Confessionals:**

**Troy: Eyrik got me out easily last time. I want to repay the favor.**

**Jeremiah: Maddie was more slippery than an eel dripped in grease swimming in motor oil!**

Troy rebounded quickly, firing several times. Eyrik pushed Danny onto the ground and they avoided Troy's shots. Troy meant to fire again when his trigger got stuck; Danny snickered as Eyrik meant to hit him, when out of nowhere his vest lights up. Behind him, Christy smiles softly; she and Kylie had snuck up on the scene.

Both Kylie and Troy then shot at Danny, but the distraction made by the cannon boom allowed him to evade the lasers and run off. "See you later, darlings," Troy commented, kissing Christy's hand, before running off after Danny.

Christy blushed, while Kylie muttered, "Boys…"

***Somewhere _else_ in the Maze***

Mickey and Jada proceeded cautiously through the maze, and both jumped nervously when the cannon went off. Looking towards the ceiling, they saw Eyrik's face. "Wow…" was all Jada could get out.

**Confessionals:**

**Jada: Wow. First Maddie, and now Eyrik. This challenge is just full of surprises. Yay…**

An alien then popped out of the wall and the two girls held each other and screamed, until seeing that it was just a cardboard cutout. "Sheesh…" Mickey complained. "This challenge is kinda scary!"

"Stop being so nesh, girls!" came a voice. Both jumped again and saw that it was only John, laughing at their terror. "Oh, stop, stop! I'll wet meself!"

"Stop being such a jerk!" Jada stomped. "It's not funny!"

John wiped his eyes. "I ain't a jerk! Just a jokester. Laugh a little bit sometimes, mate!"

The three paused when they heard someone screaming, "No! Chef! NO!" A cannon boomed and Jason's face was displayed in the ceiling.

"That's my cue to run," John said with a grin. "See ya girlies!"

Once he was gone, Annalisia shook her head, but couldn't help having a small, amused smile on her face. "What an ass."

"He may be an ass, but at least he's occasionally entertaining," came a snooty voice. Lauren. "Unlike you two twerps. Gosh, why do you even try?"

Both Jada and Mickey raised their laser guns at the same time. "Say it again, Whoren. I dare you," Jada threatened.

Lauren threw up her hands in mock terror. "Oh no! I'm so terribly intimidated by you losers!"

Mickey glared at her. "Why, you little-" Before she could finish, her vest lit up. Using the argument as a distraction, she hit her target without notice. Reacting quickly, Jada followed up and shot Lauren where her heart should be. You know...if she even had one.

***Somewhere _ELSE_ in the maze***

Kylie and Christy were walking when two lasers hit both of them. "No!" Kylie exclaimed.

"Yes!" came the response – Jeremiah! Four cannon booms then went off – Mickey, Lauren, Kylie, and Christy. This left it at 6-2, an advantage for Team Extraterrestrial; Jeremiah, Bliss, John, Ren, Danny, and Jada against Troy and Orion.

"Victory is imminent!" Jeremiah exclaimed with a grin. Suddenly, another cannon went off – Danny's picture ignited the ceiling.

***Somewhere _ELSEEEEE_ in the maze***

Orion kept running and ran smack-dab into John. "Oi!" the Brit exclaimed, raising his gun; the musician raised his gun in a counterattack as well.

"Wait!" Orion exclaimed. "Chef is on our tails. We both know that. Let's team up and take him out, and then we'll worry about each other. Deal?"

"Deal," John said without hesitation. "That brute would skin us alive on our own."

"That brute," came a deep voice, "Is also right behind you." Both boys turned slowly around in fear. And then they ran. "MAGGOTS!" Chef boomed. "You can run, but you can't hide! HA!" He took several shots at them, but each missed.

"What's the plan?" John asked the guitarist.

Ori shrugged. "I didn't really have one!"

John suddenly stopped straight in his tracks, grabbing Orion to a halt as well. Chef couldn't stop himself, unprepared, and by the time he turned around both boys were shooting at him. Chef grinned. "That won't work, maggots. I'm _invincible_."

John then threw his laser gun at Chef's head, and the cook fell backwards, knocked out.

"Awesome!" Orion exclaimed, and the two high-fived. Ori then proceeded to shoot John.

**Confessionals:**

**John: That bloody bastard.**

**Bliss: Ugh. I'm all alone is this stupid maze. This is _so_ boring.**

Elsewhere in the maze, Bliss was wandering aimlessly when she heard the cannon boom and saw John's face on the ceiling. "You're next," came a smug voice. Troy had appeared from the corner, gun pointing straight at her.

Bliss was tempted to roll her eyes but instead smiled politely. "Oh no, you've caught me. Make it quick."

Troy was initially caught off by the niceness, and that was what Bliss had been banking on. She was about to shoot him before Troy came to his senses and shot her. Several lasers than passed right in front of him, a narrow miss.

Jeremiah had arrived on the scene. Troy grinned. "Get ready to have a taste of my skills!" He shot several times, but Jeremiah dodged them by leaping up into the air and crouching on top of one of the maze's walls. Troy stomped his foot. "That's cheating!"

"All's fair in lasers and war, pardner!" was the response. Troy took off running with Jeremiah trailing him.

"None shall target the Grand Master Ninja Troy!" Troy exclaimed. Although, in his heart, he knew it was only a matter of time before he was caught.

***Elsewhere in the Maze***

Jada turned a corner and found herself face-to-face with Orion. Both gasped initially and then backed up.

"I've been waiting for this," Jada said with a grin. Not ordinarily one to hold grudges, Jada had formed a rivalry with the musician in the previous season. During the later portion of the game, both had consistently campaigned to eliminate the other. She was more than ready to avenge her elimination.

"Me too," was Orion's reply. Noah's cousin had eliminated several of his friends – specifically, his close friend, Rain. It was time for vengeance.

Both backed up slowly and then pulled their triggers. It was Jada who ended up hit, however; she had lost her balance and staggered while Orion rolled out of the way. The cannon boomed and Jada's face lit up the ceiling. It was now 2-2.

Orion counted off on his fingers. "Me… Jeremiah… Troy… and then who?"

"That would be me, dumbass," came a cynical voice. How could he have forgotten about Ren? Before Ori could react, Ren leapt forward, kicked the gun out of his hands, and raised his own gun.

"No cursing, Ren!" came Chris' agitated voice over the loudspeaker. "I repeat, no cursing!"

Ren looked at the defenseless musician. Another cannon went off; Ren refused to take his eyes off of Orion, but he didn't have to. The defenseless guitarist clenched his fists and muttered, "Damn it, Troy…"

Ren smirked. "End of the line." But before he could shoot, his own vest lit up. "_WHAT?!_" Ren exclaimed in shock. "_How?_" he asked incredulously, pointing at Ori.

Troy then walked up. "Surprise!"

And it hit Ren – he'd been tricked by Orion. Ori had pretended like it was Troy who'd gotten shot so Ren wouldn't see his own loss coming.

"Team StarKid! You've won this challenge! Team Extraterrestrial, elimination tonight!" came Rosa's voice over the loudspeakers; Chris could be heard grumbling in the background.

Orion and Troy ran at each other and chest bumped in excitement, but instead ended up knocking each other to the floor.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

John and Jeremiah sat on one bottom bunk while Mickey and Jada sat on the other one. Bliss and Danny stood together, while Eyrik and Ren stood standing around the cabin.

Jeremiah put up a grin despite being upset at their loss and at how he'd been bested by Troy. "It could always be another reward challenge!"

But the general atmosphere in the room made it pretty clear that no one else thought that. Ren glared down at Miah. "One of us is being voted off tonight. Give me one reason why it shouldn't be you."

Miah was honestly taken aback. "What? Pardner, you're barking up the wrong tree here. We all performed the best we could. And I performed pretty darn well too. It's not the time to be turnin' against ev'ryone else."

"Well then when is the time?" Danny questioned quietly. "Like it or not, someone's going. It'll be much easier if we just reach a general consensus. Personally, going performance based, I think it should be Eyrik this time." He locked eyes with Bliss, who nodded slightly. Could this be the first act of their alliance? Eliminating Eyrik? Danny hadn't even decided if that was what his vote was yet.

_That's his plan_, Eyrik thought, piecing it together. _Him and Bliss teamed up to take me out._

Jada shook her head. "Eyrik is still the strongest player on our team! We all mess up in a challenge every once in a while. Tell us why we shouldn't vote _you_ off, Danny _Peterson_." She put extra emphasis on his last name.

"Well, I personally dunno who I'm votin' for," John said. "We all did a righty-good job today. But you can bet, right as rain, I ain't voting for Miah or Eyrik."

"Why not Bliss?" Mickey asked innocently. "She is quite a troublemaker, after all."

"But I've been so nice recently," Bliss pointed out, even more innocently. "And I did outlast you this time, after all. Why shouldn't you be the one voted off?"

"Because we won't let her be," Ren growled. But Bliss' words stung Mickey – why _shouldn't_ she be voted off? Jada patted her shoulder reassuringly.

"I need some air," Jeremiah said, getting up. With one last glare at Ren, he got up and left. Jada followed after him.

**Confessional:**

**Jada: Miah's feeling pretty beat up right now. He could use a friend to turn to.**

John got up too. "Lemme go talk to him," he said to no one in particular. He and Jeremiah were particularly good friends, a friendship formed by being on the same team last season.

Bliss shrugged. "Looks like this meeting is adjourned."

***Woods***

"That smug little prick," Jeremiah muttered, fuming. He'd been nothing but nice to Ren, and then he had the nerve to turn on him like that.

"Hey, Miah, how you holding up?" asked Jada as she followed after him.

"Pretty pissed, to be honest."

"I'm sure Ren didn't mean to offend you like that. He's a bit of a jerk sometimes, but hey, it's who he is. Don't let it bother you."

"It does bother me, Jada. Lots of things are bothering me, in fact," he added.

"Like what?"

"Like how I'm not kissing you right now." Before Jada could respond, Jeremiah took a step forward and pressed his lips onto hers. He backed away after a few seconds with a sheepish grin. "Oops. I slipped."

Jada just stood there for a few moments, allowing things to sink in. She then slapped Jeremiah across his face and stormed off.

What they didn't know… Mr. Nosy was listening in on their conversation.

**Confessionals:**

**Jeremiah: I guess I kinda deserved that… hehe…**

**John: WHY! Why, I ask you, good Lord, why does it _always_ have to be _me_!**

***Beach***

Bliss stood on the beach by herself. "Ugh. Stupid game. Stupid Annaloser. Stupid alliance. Stupid having to be nice."

She was approached by Jason. "Hey, beautiful," he said. She didn't even need to look at him to see the smug grin on his face.

And suddenly she came up with a way to release all of her tension. She turned around and started making out with Jason. "Is there somewhere a bit more… private… we can go?" she asked seductively. Nothing like some good manipulation to ease her mind.

**Confessionals:**

**Bliss: I'm not going to commit anything to Jason. But hey, even with that enigma Danny thinking he's got me all figured out, why not mess with Jason? Having a proxy on the other team – that's what it's all about.**

**Jason: I'm getting some lip action, baby!**

Danny had begun to follow Bliss down to the beach, wanting to run some strategies by her. He'd stopped and watched from a distance as Jason approached her, and when they begun to walk off, he felt something that he wasn't sure about. He could've sworn it was jealousy.

**Confessionals:**

**Danny: I don't like Bliss! That's ridiculous. Sure she's reasonably attractive but she's such a bitch. I mean, it's just impossible… right?**

* * *

**Well, there we go! Another challenge down, and many new storyline doors opening up. But for one character, the doors are going to close. Team Extraterrestrial – Annalisia, Bliss, Danny, Eyrik, Jada, Jeremiah, John, and Ren. Please inbox your votes to TotalDramaKingdomHearts A.S.A.P**

**And feel free to leave your thoughts about what's going on in a review! Your opinions count!**


	5. Go to Sleep, Sherlock

Chris grinned as Team Extraterrestrial sat at the campfire pit. Mickey and Jada sat next to each other, with Jeremiah and John behind them. Ren, Danny, and Eyrik sat a bit further off, and Bliss was sitting by herself.

John twitched nervously, but nobody was really paying him any attention, all focused on the ceremony. _Why… why… this is horrible!_ He thought.

"Well, kiddos!" Chris began. "Wasn't this challenge fun!"

"Yessir!" Miah called out. Receiving glares from Jada and Ren, he timidly chuckled.

"Ohhhh! Tensiony!" Chris said, rubbing his hands. "I love it!"

Annalisia stared at him. "Get it over with, McLean!"

Chris stuck his tongue out at her. "Well! Someone's feeling feisty! Anyways, this season, if or when you're voted off, you must walk down the Dock of Shame, climb the Stairs of Loserdom, and board the Shuttle of Failures, where you will promptly be flown off of this island. As in _forever._" He let them sink it in for a few seconds.

**Confessionals:**

**Jada: Wow, that looks so -**

**Mickey: - awesome!**

**Danny: What a charming way to eliminate someone. And if all goes as planned, I know who that someone will be…**

Chris smiled. "So, who wants a marshmallow? First two go to…"

"John!" Relieved, John sighed and took his marshmallow.

"Annalisia! You're safe too!" Mickey and Jada squealed as she got her mallow.

Chris stared at the six remaining contestants – Bliss, Danny, Eyrik, Jada, Jeremiah, and Ren. "Each one of you sitting down has received at _least_ one vote."

Everyone started putting all of their focus on what Chris was saying. Danny looked around quickly. Which one of them had voted for him? And was he the one to be going home?

"Still safe is… Danny!" D.P. stood up calmly. It wasn't him, at least not tonight.

"Bliss!" The bitch-pretending-to-be-a-nice-girl smiled at her other contestants and took her marshmallow. "Of course!" Bliss commented.

"And… angry Ren!" Ren got up, punched Chris in the arm, and took his marshmallow.

"Ow…" Chris said, rubbing his arm. They were now down to three – Jada, Jeremiah, and Eyrik. Jeremiah sat calm and composed, keeping his cool; Eyrik was showing as little emotion as ever. Jada, however, was starting to freak out.

**Confessionals:**

**Jada: Was Miah just trying to distract me with a kiss? Was he trying to backdoor me?**

"And still safe, and out of the hot seat…" Chris paused, letting them sweat it out for a few more seconds. "Jaders!"

"I knew it all along," she replied sarcastically, taking her marshmallow and hugging Mickey. But that still left two.

Chris grinned. "Jeremiah! You're very personable, have many friends, performed excellently in today's challenge, and always keep people entertained! Eyrik! You say nothing, have ties to practically nobody on your team, were the worst performer in the challenge, and continue to be mysterious and aloof. But the person who received the most votes is…"

Chris flipped through the votes in his hand. "Both of you! With two votes each ,it's a tie!"

Jeremiah and Eyrik both shot up out of their seats.

**Confessionals:**

**Jeremiah: Really? _Again?_ Must I _always_ be in the hot seat! Dangflabbit!**

The two boys exchanged very nervous glances. "So what does this mean, pardner?" Jeremiah asked nervously. "I don't suppose you could just let us both leave hurr… hehe…"

"No I cannot, my diamond in the rough! It's tiebreaker challenge time!" Chris pointed over to two very large trees where a green flag with an alien's face on it perched at the very top. "For this tiebreaker, both of you must race to the top and pull out your flag! First one to get it wins the challenge and gets to stay here! Loser – Shuttle of Failures for you!"

Miah and Eyrik got ready in front of their respective trees. Jeremiah extended his hand. "Whatever happens here, man… You were a good competitor, and a good friend. I'd be mighty pleased to either beat you or lose to you."

Eyrik slowly extended his hand out as well, and the two shook. Chris then pulled out his bullhorn. "One, two, three… GO!"

"Oi! You got this, Miah!" John exclaimed.

Jeremiah grinned as he started finding footholds in the tree. "Thanks Johnny boy! No chance am I losing!"

Then Chris used the bullhorn again. "Eyrik has reached his flag!"

The country boy stared up in awe at Eyrik stoically stood on one of the highest branches of his tree, the flag in his hand. He'd hardly even started before Eyrik had finished. The quiet boy leapt down gracefully and shrugged at Miah's awestruck expression.

"Aw, shucks…" Miah rubbed it off. "It was fun, boys and girls!"

Walking away from Eyrik, he shook hands with Danny and hugged Bliss, then Annalisia. He glared at Ren and then approached Jada. "Sorry for, uh, everything," he mumbled.

Jada shook her head. "I voted for you," she whispered so only he could hear.

Shocked, he approached John last. Comically tearing up, he wailed, "NO! My dear mate… gone too soon! We could've been the dream team!"

"John…"

"The Two Amigos!"

"Johnny…"

"The Musketeers!"

"JOHN!"

The Brit looked his friend in the eyes. "Win fur me, kay?"

John grinned. "I'll do just that, mate." The two had one last bro hug before Miah walked down the Dock of Shame and ascended the Stairs of Loserdom. As he got into the Shuttle of Failures, he exclaimed, "WHOOO! THIS IS AWESOME!" And then the shuttle took off, with the country hick in it.

**Confessionals:**

**Danny: That, certainly, wasn't what I wanted. But hey, a big threat is gone, so who am I to complain?**

**Ren: Best ceremony I've ever attended, personally.**

Team Extraterrestrial slowly trudged back to their cabins. Annalisia walked over to Jada and said, "Man, am I surprised to see him go! What, he had fifth place last time, and now he's just gone! Surprising, right?"

"Not really," Jada said without care.

"What do you mean?" her friend asked, confused.

Jada shrugged. "I voted for him."

Mickey opened her mouth in shock. "What! Why!"

Noticing Bliss walking uncomfortably close to them, Jada muttered, "Tell you later…"

Eyrik was deep in thought. _It was unfortunate to see him go. I liked him. But this confirms my suspicions – Danny Peterson is a threat._

As they approached the cabins, Team StarKid sat out waiting for them. Christy quickly counted heads when she realized who'd been eliminated. "No! Jeremiah?"

"Yup," came a response from Bliss.

"Who would've voted him out?" Jason asked, puzzled.

With a slight grin on his face, Ren called out to everyone, "Good night, people who aren't country hicks!" Eyrik and John followed him into their cabins, and Annalisia and Jada went into their own to discuss recent events.

"_And country boys, and their fancy rope toys,_" Maddie sang solemnly. She led Christy, Kylie, and Lauren into their cabins.

Troy, Ori, and Jason went to go to sleep when Danny called out to them, "Wait."

The boys looked around nervously. "Us?" Troy asked, confused.

Danny nodded and gestured for them to join he and Bliss. "What do you want with us, loser?" Jason asked, scoffing.

"An alliance," Danny said simply, and the Team StarKid boys dropped their mouths in shock. "We're five strong and strategical players. Well, maybe not _all _of us," he added, looking at Jason struggling to figure out what strategical meant, "But still. We're strong players. So I suggest a secret alliance. Surely we all have targets?"

"Jada," commented Orion.

"Annaloser!" Bliss said excitedly.

"Jas- um, I mean, Eyrik," Troy replied.

Danny nodded. "Surely, the five of us can work together to accomplish our goals?"

"The Fearsome Five!" Jason exclaimed, snapping his fingers as the idea came to him. When everyone stared, he said, "That's our alliance. The Fearsome Five."

"I like it," Troy said. Of course he would. He loved being called fearsome.

"Um, sure," Bliss said. "That's us. So, we're good?"

The boys quickly looked at each other before nodding.

D.P. grinned. "Excellent. Now good night boys, and make sure to keep this under wraps."

**Confessionals:**

**Troy: I'm not thrilled about working with Bliss and Jason, but hey, this'll shake things up!**

**Jason: I hope this doesn't mean I have to lay off that Ninja Nerd…**

Bliss stared at Danny. He hadn't mentioned anything to her about this. "What are you up to, loser?" she asked sassily with her hands on her hips. "Do you really want to work with them?"

Danny stood up and walked to his cabin. "More like take them to the merge and double-cross them," he called back to her.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

"He _kissed_ you?" Mickey asked in shock.

Jada confirmed it with a nod. "Yep. I had to get him out. Who knows what would've happened if I'd let him stay?"

Mickey gasped. "No way! You _so_ like him!"

"I do NOT!" Jada exclaimed, blushing furiously. She knew that she didn't want to like him, but…

At that moment, Bliss walked in. "What are we talking about, gal pals?" she asked.

**Confessionals:**

**Bliss: Gal pals? Really? Surely whoever writes for me could at least _try_ to not make me hate every word that comes out of my mouth…**

Mickey and Jada exchanged glances. "Nothing!" they exclaimed in unison.

Bliss shrugged and climbed into her bed. Mickey looked over at Jada and mouthed, _We are so not done talking about this._

Jada flipped her off and climbed under the covers.

***Team StarKid, Boys' Side***

Jason was already fast asleep, and Ori stood pacing. "What do we know?" he asked Troy, who was sitting attentively.

"That Jason isn't smart enough to tie his own shoe," Troy offered.

"Exactly. What else?"

"Bliss has a curvaceous body and a habit for manipulation."

"Good. Anything else?"

"Not much about D.P., unfortunately."

"And that, dear Watson, is where the pieces fall into place."

"Sometimes your sarcasm stings."

Ori smacked Troy across the back of the head before continuing. "Stop being a wuss. Now, we know Bliss is a good manipulator and probably has D.P. wrapped around her finger. But strategy isn't really her thing. Evidenced by our earlier conversation, Danny is working with Bliss. And thus, what can we assume?"

"That D.P. is the mastermind here?"

"You're so smart sometimes."

"Sarcasm still stings! But whatever. How much can we trust these people? I don't like Bliss or Jason, but I'm not familiar with Danny. Is this alliance worth it?"

"Yeah, definitely. Danny's a real good guy. We can trust him."

"Awesome. Now go to sleep, Sherlock."

**Confessionals:**

**Danny: Of course I'm only in this to avenge myself and the others. Orion voted me out last time, so he's going to pay for that. Jason is a massive idiot and a big jerk and on top of it all was a big irritant to the Killer Apes, so he needs to go too. And Bliss? Do I even need to mention why she deserves to pay? As for Troy, he may be an egotist but he isn't necessarily an offender. I'll try and work with him should he survive. As for all the others… they'll be going down. All of them.**

* * *

**Sorry, Jeremiah, we'll miss you dearly! But you'd better be prepared for next chapter! Cause I know a certain video-taping skater girl slash Aftermath host who is NOT going to be happy! ^_^Things are really picking up though. Opinions?**

**_Votes:_**

**Annalisia:** No way...there is NO way that some mystical fairy godmother just answered all my prayers and made Bliss less bitchy. As much as I'd love for it to be true...it's just impossible! My vote goes for Bliss. The sooner the bitch is gone, the better.

**Bliss: **Ugh, that loser… he's the only strategy I've got so far, though. So I'll stick with him. Eyrik.

**Danny:** Eyrik should do.

**Eyrik: ***Eyrik walks into the confessional, as static and silent, as always. He sits down, rubbing the sides of his head, a bit. He quickly and silently pulls out a piece of paper and writes one person's name on it. As usual, he doesn't show whose name it is, but if one looks carefully, the name 'Danny' can be seen. He drops it in the confessional box and then leaves as quickly as he appeared*

**Jada:** I can't even begin to explain how wrong it is that Jeremiah kissed me… I didn't like it… I mean maybe a little bit… ugh! But he is such a major distraction. And I don't do distractions. So I vote for Jeremiah. Oh God...I'm so sorry Rain!

**Jeremiah:** I don't really have problems with people, but when two-faced bastards have a problem with me… Adios, Ren.

**John:** This is Brooke and Eyrik all over again! No! Jeremiah? Jada? I don't know! Fine. Jeremiah's my mate, and I need to stick by him and protect him. I vote off Jada!

**Ren:** Bye bye, country hick Jeremiah.

**__And let's see how Jeremiah's ride was in the Shuttle of Failures! ^_^**

**_Shuttle Cam:_**

**Jeremiah:** Well, I played the best game I can. I never should've expected to beat Eyrik, but that's just my competitive streak, partner! And as for these votes, well… a game is a game. I had fun! And best of luck to John and the rest of my team. Except for a certain rat fink named Ren…


	6. She's Lethal

**Heyy people~! Guess whaaaat? This is our very. First. AFTERMATH! You excited? I am ^_^ Now let the Aftermath start in **

**5**

**4**

**3**

**2...**

**...(Me: wait, what comes after two? TDKH: one! _one!)_  
**

**_1!_**

* * *

Beatrice and Rain sat on a comfy new couch in the middle of the new and improved Aftermath room.

"Hello, viewers of Total Drama!" Beatrice said with a bright smile.

"And welcome to Total Drama Aftermath!" Rain completed, beaming.

"As you know, I'm Trixie, last years...runner-up." Beatrice completed the sentence bitterly.

"And I think I was Final 6?" Rain tapped his chin in thought. "Hmm..."

"That's not important!" Trixie said, stopping his train of thought. "Let us introduce you to..."

"The Peanut Gallery!" the co-hosts said together, they pointed to their left, and the camera turned to show four more ex-contestants. They sat in a small booth, a neon "Peanut Gallery" sign hanging above their heads.

"Introducing, Thunder, Kelvin, Deacon and Tonia!" Tonia and Deacon waved and smiled at the camera, while Thunder read her book and Kelvin looked annoyed.

"And yes," Rain said with a smug look, "they _were _introduced in the order of which they were eliminated." That made Thunder look up from her book, glaring at the painter.

"Don't make me get up from this damn booth." she warned. He laughed nervously.

"Heh heh...anywho..."

"Now we watch clips from the first two challenges of Total Drama Reach for the Stars!" Trixie said with a smile.

"While the people from the Peanut Gallery get to point out different things with these extra spedecial pads!" Rain held up an electronic pad, used to write on the big screen above their heads from their seats.

"First clip! Danny and Bliss!" On the screen, it showed Bliss' and Danny's first encounter of the game.

* * *

_Everyone nodded and filed out, but when Bliss made to leave Danny held her back._

_"What is it…" Bliss muttered nervously. __Danny shrugged. _

_"You've got no friends here. Maybe I could help you fit in with the others. Be a friend."_

_"Whatever," is what she said to Danny, and the two hurried off after their team._

* * *

"Psh. Bliss, be a friend? Right." Tonia said, rolling her eyes.

"What the hell was he thinking? Making an alliance with that bitch..." Kelvin shook his head, referring to his best friend of last season. While everyone made their comments, Thunder zoomed in on Bliss' face and started to draw a mustache on her face, along with the word BITCH on her forehead. Trixie laughed when she noticed it.

"Good one!" she laughed, going over to high-five Thunder.

"Careful!" Rain shouted out, "She's lethal!" Thunder rolled her eyes and high-fived Trixie.

"Moving on to clip two! Ren vs. Jason and Kylie!"

* * *

_ "So sorry you're going to be the first one voted out," Jason laughed._

_Ren rolled his eyes. "Whatever."_

_Both Jason and Kylie threw their balls at the same time, and in something nobody saw coming, he dodged Jason's ball, caught Kylie's, and turned around before anyone could react and forcefully threw it into Jason's face. Some blood came out of his nose, wickedly floating in the air._

_"Short maggot! Attractive maggot! OUT!"_

* * *

"Wicked!" Rain said, in awe. "I personally don't like Ren all that much, but I have to admit, that was pretty sweet." Deacon glared at the picture of Ren that was frozen on the screen.

"He's too smug for his own good! Ugly too!" he said angrily, as he began to scratch red lines all over Ren's face.

"Wait! Rewind! Rewind!" Trixie said, going back to where Jason was hit with the dodgeball. She circled the blood coming out of his nose. "Holy crap! D'you see that?"

"Kid's got a good arm." Thunder admitted, nodding in approval.

"Alright, my turn to pick a scene!" Rain said, taking the pad from Trixie, "Ah...clip three! John, Mickey, and Jada!"

* * *

_An alien then popped out of the wall and the two girls held each other and screamed, until seeing that it was just a cardboard cutout. "Sheesh…" Mickey complained. "This challenge is kinda scary!"_

_"Stop being so nesh, girls!" came a voice. Both jumped again and saw that it was only John, laughing at their terror. "Oh, stop, stop! I'll wet meself!"_

* * *

Deacon couldn't help but laugh at the two girl's terror.

"It's like watching two 5-year-olds getting scared of Courage the Cowardly Dog!"(I have to admit...that show used to scare me to death...)

"And what's more..." Kelvin said, zooming in on John. "If you look closely, you'd see that he in fact _did _wet himself laughing." circles a tiny wet spot on John's pants as he was frozen in mid-laugh. Thunder chuckled a bit.

"Nice observation." he put and arm around her, a smirk on his face.

"I know." she rolled her eyes. Trixie, meanwhile, was still laughing.

"Hahahaha! Those gals are my best friends, but this was funny! Ah...next!"

"Clip four! Team Extraterrestrial Meeting!"

* * *

_ Ren glared down at Miah. "One of us is being voted off tonight. Give me one reason why it shouldn't be you."_

_Miah was honestly taken aback. "What? Pardner, you're barking up the wrong tree here. We all performed the best we could. And I performed pretty darn well too. It's not the time to be turnin' against ev'ryone else."_

_"Well then when is the time?" Danny questioned quietly. "Like it or not, someone's going. It'll be much easier if we just reach a general consensus. Personally, going performance based, I think it should be Eyrik this time." He locked eyes with Bliss, who nodded slightly._

_Jada shook her head. "Eyrik is still the strongest player on our team! We all mess up in a challenge every once in a while. Tell us why we shouldn't vote you off, Danny Peterson." She put extra emphasis on his last name._

_"Well, I personally dunno who I'm votin' for," John said. "We all did a righty-good job today. But you can bet, right as rain, I ain't voting for Miah or Eyrik."_

_"Why not Bliss?" Mickey asked innocently. "She is quite a troublemaker, after all."_

_"But I've been so nice recently," Bliss pointed out, even more innocently. "And I did outlast you this time, after all. Why shouldn't you be the one voted off?"_

* * *

Everyone was quiet for a moment.

"Well...that was intense." Trixie said, blinking. Tonia shook her head.

"Bliss is really crafty, using her false kindness against Mickey like that."

"But," Deacon pointed out, "she had a good point. She _did _outlast Anna-whatever her name is."

"Annalisia." Trixie said, glaring at the pretty-boy.

"What d'you think D.P. is up to?" Rain asked.

"No good." Kelvin said, crossing his arms. Thunder shrugged, staring at the screen.

"Eyrik is worried." she said suddenly. Trixie and Rain studied his face on the large screen.

"Really?" Thunder rolled her eyes and zoomed in on his face, circling faint lines on his forehead.

"Stress marks." she said simply.

"Ahhh..." Rain said, "so Mr. Enigma _does _have emotion!"

"Anywho, moving on! Clip five! Jada and...w-what the hell?" she clicked on a clip.

* * *

_ "Hey, Miah, how you holding up?" asked Jada as she followed after him._

_"Pretty pissed, to be honest."_

_"I'm sure Ren didn't mean to offend you like that. He's a bit of a jerk sometimes, but hey, it's who he is. Don't let it bother you."_

_"It does bother me, Jada. Lots of things are bothering me, in fact," he added._

_"Like what?"_

_"Like how I'm not kissing you right now." Before Jada could respond, Jeremiah took a step forward and pressed his lips onto hers. He backed away after a few seconds with a sheepish grin. "Oops. I slipped."_

_Jada just stood there for a few moments, allowing things to sink in. She then slapped Jeremiah across his face and stormed off._

* * *

The room was silent, everyone looking at Beatrice. Her eyes were wide, but she put her head down, her bangs covering her face as hot tears slid down her face.

"Trix...?" Rain said softly. "Trixie?" she stood up and looked down at Rain with a fake smile, ruffling his hair.

"Let me know when Jeremiah's here, alright Rain?"

"A-alright..." with that, she walk offstage.

"That bastard." Thunder said angrily.

"It's like what happened to Brooke!" Tonia said, exasperated. "Why are men such...such...ugh!" she said, not knowing how to describe them. Deacon put on a hurt look.

"Am not all _that _bad, right Ton?" she smiled at him and kissed his cheek.

"Of course not." Kelvin and Thunder rolled their eyes.

"I'm worried about Trixie..." Rain said quietly. "She seemed pretty upset." all of a sudden, you hear a roar of anger and a crash.

"More like completely enraged." Kelvin said, crossing his arms. "Damn, who would've thought Jeremiah would do that..." then, the room began to rumble.

"Looks like the rocket is here." Rain said, looking at the entrance. He looked back to the Peanut Gallery. "Everyone, be natural." he took the clip off of the screen and looked at the camera, a strained smile on his face.

"And welcoming, Total Drama Reach for the Stars' first loser, Jeremiah!" Jeremiah walked into the room, beaming as if this was a great honor.

"Hey Miah." Kelvin said casually. Deacon gave Jeremiah a small head nod.

"Hello, Jeremiah." Tonia said softly, internally infuriated at him. Thunder ignored him, reading her book again.

"Howdy ya'll!" Jeremiah said with a tip of his hat, sitting in the guest seat.

"So Miah!" Rain began, "How does it feel to be the first one eliminated? Must of been pretty _harsh._" he put extra emphasis on harsh. Jeremiah shrugged, not noticing.

"I guess it wasn't all bad. I mean, I had a good run. I had fun y'know?"

"Yeah...I'm sure you had _plenty _of fun."

"Yeah. And losin' to Eyrik was...expected. So I guess it's all good."

"You think that, don't you?" Trixie voice was heard over a loudspeaker. "You think it's _all good?_ Ha!"

"Trix?" Jeremiah questioned. "Is that you?" all of a sudden, mushed up somethings fell from the ceiling onto Jeremiah.

"You wanna act like a pig Jeremiah? Now you can eat like one!" Trixie returned onstage, fist-pounding Thunder.

"The hell is this about? ! ?" he shouted, standing up. He was covered in pig slop from head to toe. He tried wiping it off his hat, but ultimately failing.

"Are you kidding me? ! ? !" she shouted back, putting up the kissing scene between him and Jeremiah.

"Oh shit..." he grumbled.

"Yeah! Oh shit! Cause you _are _shit! What the hell have I done to you? I've done nothing but love you! And you...you do this?" he goes up to her.

"Trixie I-"

"Can go to hell!" she finished for him, kicking him in his crotch. "GET OFF OUR STAGE!" Security came up and dragged Jeremiah away, and Trixie sat on the couch, feeling accomplished. Rain high-fived her.

"Good one Trixie!" she smiled and looked back at the camera.

"Well, thanks for watching and tune in next for Total. Drama."

"Aftermath!"

* * *

**Hope I did good for my very first Aftermath~! :D**


	7. Insert Interesting Plot Twist Here

Chris stood gleaming on the Dock of Shame. "Last time, on Total Drama Reach for the Stars! Our fifteen contestants entered into our Alien Space Laser Tag Maze where surprises abounded at every corner, including alien Chef! The teams were pretty evenly matched until Orion and Troy deceived Ren to take victory! At the elimination ceremony, both Jeremiah and Eyrik were tied at two votes each, and in the tiebreaker, it was our favorite daredevil, Jeremiah, who ended up taking the Shuttle of Failures. But unbeknownst to many, a secretive Fearsome Five alliance was formed – and, in actuality, it's just Danny's way to get vengeance! Man, I love that kid! So what will happen this time on Total! Drama! Reach for the Stars!"

***Girls' Restrooms***

Madeleine and Christy were waiting patiently in line for the showers. There were three showers, but it was the middle one exclusively that gave warm water, and currently, Lauren was hogging it. The other two showers were frigid. Christy meekly tapped on the door. "Um, Lauren, do you think you could, um, hurry up? Please?"

"As if, losers," came Lauren's retort. She laughed smugly to herself.

"But we've been waiting! You've been in there for quite a while…"

"I may be naturally beautiful, unlike you two freaks, but I do enjoy a nice warm shower. So wait your turn! Gosh!"

Maddie shrugged and grinned. "Cold showers aren't that bad! They're nothing but the next great adventure!"

Christy was forced to concede; Lauren wasn't getting out of there anytime soon. "Well, I guess."

**Confessionals:**

**Lauren: Those girls are _so_ easy to take advantage of. I love it.**

**Christy: I just wish Lauren could be traded off of our team, or something…**

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

Danny lay on his top bunk, staring at the ceiling. Ren and John had already headed out to breakfast and Eyrik was gone when they'd woken up. A knock on the door was followed by Bliss walking in. "It's time for breakfast, dweeb," she said. A smile crossed her face. "Oh, how I love being mean. You have no idea how taxing it is being nice to Annaloser and Jadork!"

Danny leapt down from his bunk. "Trust me, it's all worth it. We're going to ride this through to the very end. One of us will end up winning."

"What about our Fearsome Five?" Bliss asked sarcastically, laughing. "We really shouldn't count any of them out!"

"Soon, they'll all be gone too. No need to worry at all."

"If you say so, mega loser," Bliss replied. Like it or not, she was actually starting to view Danny Peterson as something close to a friend. "Let's go get some food."

As both of them walked out of the open door, neither one noticed the person standing still on the other side.

Eyrik.

***Mess Hall***

Ori, Troy, and Kylie sat together; Troy made some horrible flirtatious comment and Orion smacked him upside the head, causing Kylie to roll her eyes and smile slyly. Mickey and Ren sat together as usual, while Jada, for a change, found herself in the company of John. Jason ate with Lauren and kept casting glances towards Bliss, who sat in close proximity to D.P. Eyrik hadn't bothered to show up, and Maddie and Christy were just arriving.

Taking a small table for two, Christy sighed. "I'm still shivering from that cold shower!"

"It wasn't sooooooooooooo bad…" Maddie replied. "I mean, if penguins can do it than so can we! Right!"

"The thing is, Maddie, we're not penguins… Let's go get some food."

Lauren noticed Jason's nervousness. "Um, Jase, what's up? Got a twitch or something?"

"Alliance? No! What are you talking about? Hehe…"

**Confessionals:**

**Jason: Okay, I'm really not the best at secret keeping.**

Lauren looked him over suspiciously. "Is there something you're not telling me, Jason, baby?" She put her hand on his calf. "Something you'd like to… share?"

Flirting. He may not be good at secrets, but Jason had buckets full of bravado. Putting on a charming smile, he caressed her face with the back of his hand and replied, "No, darling, there's nothing at all."

Rolling her eyes, Lauren removed his hand. "Whatever. At least you're pretty, sweetie."

"Thanks," Jason replied, not realizing what she'd meant.

As for Jada and John, the two were discussing the ceremony. "Listen," John started, "I just want to clear the air, alrite, Jade?"

"Don't call me Jade," Jada replied, staring at him with daggers in her eyes.

"Point taken, ma'am. But, uh, I just needed to tell you that it was me who voted for you at the ceremony." John gave a sheepish grin. "Sorry."

Jada stared at him for a few seconds. "Okay… why."

"I saw you kissing my mate, Jeremiah. And, well, I knew it wasn't good. I couldn't vote for him, so I figured my best vote was for you. Sorry. Nothing personal."

"Well, Johnny boy, your honesty does mean much to me."

"It does?"

"Nope. But as long as we're 'clearing the air' as you put it, I voted out Miah."

John stared at her dramatically, aghast. "You vixen! How could you!"

"Because he kissed me…"

"Seems a bit dramatic to blame a vote based off of a kiss…" Jada raised her eyebrow. "Well, okay, sure. But Jeremiah is still a strong asset! I'm shocked at your actions Jada Q. Kazoo. Bamboozled, in fact."

"That isn't my name."

"It could be."

"I think we're done here."

Mickey appeared crestfallen over at her table. Ren put his arm around here. "What's wrong?"

"It's just, if such a strong player as Miah could've been voted off so soon… where does that leave us?"

"It leaves us at a position to try and protect ourselves," Ren replied wisely. "We can't just go blindly voting… we need to look out for each other."

Mickey smiled and pecked him on the lips. "I'm glad I have you."

Back over with Maddie and Christy, the topic was still on Lauren. "You know," Christy started, "I just wish we could trade Lauren to the other team, or something. It'd make things so much easier."

Chris then popped up behind her. "Trade teams, you say?"

"AAH!"

"Well, that's exactly what's going to happen!"

Everyone turned to face him. A team switch? That certainly could only mean trouble. "What do you mean, Chris?" Danny called over.

Chris gave him a toothy grin. "I am glad you asked, Danny! Here's the new policy we're introducing this season – if you end up in the Bottom Two of an elimination ceremony, and survive, you'll be offered the opportunity to trade a member of your team for a member of the opposing team. So Eyrik, would you like to make a trade?"

Eyrik stood up and shook his head.

"When'd he get here?" John asked, confused.

"He wasn't in here a few minutes ago," Jason pointed out.

"Silence!" Chris shouted. Turning to Eyrik with a devilish smile, he asked, "So, Eyrik, trade or no trade?" he thought for a moment.

A small nod of the head was a reply. _Yes._

"Well, who and for who?" Chris asked the enigma.

Eyrik thought it over for a few seconds before pointing at Bliss. "Hey!" she exclaimed. Eyrik inwardly took pleasure at seeing Danny Peterson's face pale.

Eyrik then pointed at Kylie. "Me?" she asked, surprised. She'd expected him to take one of the boys, but not her.

**Confessionals:**

**Bliss: Ugh. This really isn't good. Now I'm on the same team as Lauren and Crazy Maddie! No fun! But there is my alliance to look forward to.**

**Kylie: I think Eyrik is up to something. I'm going to miss my old team, but it's awesome to be with Annalisia and Jada again.**

Rosa than entered the mess hall. "It's time for the challenge, everyone," she said with a perky smile.

No one looked enthusiastic.

Chris cleared his throat and took center stage. "It's time for the challenge, everyone!" he exclaimed. Everyone then started whooping and cheering.

"You planned this out with them, didn't you," Rosa angrily said, glaring at the host. "Anyways, we've got a really awesome challenge planned for you guys! Please follow me outside!"

As the contestants filed out, Danny reached out to grab Bliss' arm. "What is it, Petersuck?" the queen bee asked.

"Prioritize," was his simple response, and he followed the others out, leaving Bliss alone.

She stamped her foot on the ground. "Can you _ever_ speak clearly!"

Outside were fourteen strange-looking contraptions. "What are these for?" Kylie called over to Rosa as all fourteen stood in front of an individual machine.

"These are our McLean brand Motion Sickness Simulators!" Rosa exclaimed. Chris mocked her speaking behind her back. "Each one of you contestants will strap yourself into these machines, which will then start spinning in circles, taking you upside down, sideways, diagonal – you name it. The first seven of you to throw up will be eliminated, while the remaining seven will remain to compete in the next stage of this competition. Understand?"

Everyone nodded. "It seems kinda gross," Christy whispered to Maddie, who merely shrugged and grinned.

During this, Kylie made her way over to Eyrik. She was still confused to his motives. "Why'd you pick me?" she whispered. The two locked eyes and then Eyrik quickly flicked his vision over to Jason. Kylie understood – both had a mutual hatred towards him. "Orion says I should cool off my grudge on him," Kylie muttered. Eyrik met her eyes again before turning back to Rosa.

"Now, in case you _don't_ understand," Chris began.

"What are you doing?" Rosa interrupted. She hadn't been informed of anything like this to be going on.

Chris pushed her away and ignored her question. "Please welcome back a classic Total Drama competitor to demonstrate – Geoff!"

The tall, energetic party boy arrived on the scene with his hat and a big grin. "What's up, dudes and dudettes! The Geoffster is back!"

Everyone was happy to see him. As Geoff made his way down the line of teens, shaking hands and hugging when it was appropriate, Orion was mildly starstruck. "Dude, you're awesome," he managed to get out.

The two shook hands. "Thanks, man!" Geoff replied. "Nice hat, by the way!"

As Geoff walked off, Troy rolled his eyes. "Get over the man-crush."

Once the introductions were finished, Chris helped Geoff strap himself into one of the machines. "Stand clear!" Chris announced. "You do not want to get caught in his vomit rocket."

"Woohoo!" Geoff exclaimed as the machine began spinning. "This is kinda totally freaking awesome! Feels like a giant party rush! WHOO! Getting kinda dizzy though… wow, this sure is moving… pretty fast… Nope! This is still so much fun! Except… I'm nauseous… Chris, man! Chris! Stop the ride! Stop the ride, dude!" Chris shook his head maliciously, and then Geoff puked. As he was still spinning around, the puke cascaded all over him, the ground, and the machine. It was good that the others had backed away.

"Now it's time for you guys to go!" Rosa called out as she helped Geoff get out of his machine.

Everyone rushed into theirs, and it ended up that Bliss was stuck with the one Geoff had been in. It was covered in puke. "Nope. No way. Sorry, guys, I know I'm nice now and everything, but just no."

Her team yelled at her to get into the machine but she refused to budge. "Whatever," Chris said. "Time to begin!"

Some people were having trouble holding in their breakfasts. "Oi! My insides are going to soon become my very, very outsides!" John exclaimed. Talking to Maddie next to him, he said, "How you holdin' up, dear?"

"I LOVE THIS! FASTER!" she exclaimed, laughing manically.

"I can respect that," Geoff said, bumping knuckles with Chris.

Ren became the first to throw up. Chef appeared out of nowhere with a buzzer and yelled, "JERKY MAGGOT! OUT!"

Ren dismounted from his machine, grumbling, when Christy's puke coated the back of his head. "Sorry," she said shyly as Chef rang his buzzer.

"Last Place Maggot, OUT!"

A few seconds later, Jada puked, and John followed right after. "I'm as dizzy as a bee," the Brit commented as he dismounted, and then collapsed onto the ground.

"Sarcastic Maggot and British Maggot! OUT!"

"How you holding up?" Ori called over to Troy.

In response, Troy threw up very much. Lauren followed soon after.

"Ninja Maggot, Snooty Maggot! ELIMINATED! End of Part One!"

As the seven very dizzy, very sick contestants that survived – Madeleine, Orion, Jason, Kylie, Danny, Eyrik, and Annalisia – dismounted, Geoff turned grinning to Chris. "Awesome, so what's Part Two? How do I demonstrate?"

"Well, Geoff," Chris explained, walking him down to the Dock of Shame and up the Stairs of Loserdom, "First, you get into this here shuttle." As Geoff boarded the Shuttle of Failures, Chris pushed a button on a remote control that sent the shuttle flaring away with Geoff screeching.

Back with the contestants, Rosa dismissed the seven who'd been eliminated. "Go cool off, guys!" she said, and they grumbled away. Turning to the remaining seven, very dizzy, she explained, "Now, here's where it's fun!" She led them over to seven stumps. "Each of you must stand on one of these stumps, and while you're still dizzy, these stumps will be shifting up and down, up and down. The remaining two contestants will advance on to the third and final portion of the challenge."

All seven woozily boarded. Kylie looked a bit nervous, and Orion shot her a thumbs up. Jason nearly fell off before the challenge even began, causing Annalisia to laugh.

"And… begin!"

It was hard enough for the seven of them to stand still without falling – except for Madeleine, that is. She seemed perfectly unfazed by the previous portion of the challenge and was doing exceptionally well, to Rosa's and Chris' surprise. As soon as the stumps started moving up and down, Orion tumbled backwards and collapsed on his back.

"Musical Maggot! OUT! Hehe."

"My spine," he moaned and then passed out. Maddie looked down at her fallen teammate before shrugging, obviously not concerned.

With the others, Eyrik was faring reasonably well, concentration and focus on his mind. _If I lose, what's to stop Danny from trying to come after me again?_ He thought.

Speaking of Danny, he wasn't doing well in the challenge at all.

**Confessionals:**

**Danny: I tried my best, but this challenge was just brutal. Vin, if you're watching, I wish you were doing this with me. You'd be a pro. I'm avenging us both, man!**

Danny shrugged and fell off of his stump, on his hands and knees on the ground. Eyrik lost his balance next, keeling over and sputtering. This challenge really was brutal.

"Normal Maggot, Quiet Maggot! OUT!" The two mag-eh, contestants- locked eyes with each other and it was very clear that both viewed the other as an enemy. Danny grinned and waved before passing out.

Only four were left now – Jason, Maddie, Mickey, and Kylie. Jason then threw up all over the still-unconscious Orion and fell off of his stump. It was now between the girls.

"Extremely Attractive Maggot! OUT!"

**Confessionals:**

**Jason: Why does he continually call me attractive…**

**John: Ha! I love how someone else is on the receiving end of Chef's creepiness, mwahaha!**

**Orion: He threw up on me? C'MON! Have some class, man!**

"Keep it up, Mickey!" came encouragement from Jada as she woozily stumbled over, curious as to how the competition was still going. Mickey shook her head and yelled, "I tried!" before being forced to jump off of her stump, running over to Chris, puking on him, and cowering on the ground.

"Pranky maggot, OUT! End of Part Two!"

"Nice job, girls," came Rosa's nice words as Kylie and Maddie, the only remaining contestants, dismounted from their stumps.

The two girls, and friends, smiled at each other. "May the best woman win!" Kylie exclaimed. She staggered and almost fell, and Maddie caught her.

"Better hang in there! Wouldn't wanna go up against a sickie!"

**Confessionals:**

**Kylie: One thing I know I'll miss about Team StarKid? Maddie.**

**Madeleine: This challenge is so much fun! I can't wait to see what Part Three is. _Part Three, Part Three, A loss now would sting like a bee!_**

Rosa, Chris, and Chef led the two remaining contestants to the final part of the challenge. Rosa smiled and gestured to a booth with a mechanical arm sticking out of it; the end of the arm contained a pod with one side for Madeleine, and one side for Kylie. "For this challenge," Rosa began, "Both of you will enter into a side of pod, and we'll spin you around and around continually, getting faster and faster with each rotation. The first person to throw up will be eliminated. Sound good?"

Kylie and Maddie locked eyes and smiled. "FUN!" Maddie exclaimed.

"I'm so ready for this," Kylie replied.

"Load them up!" Chris exclaimed giddily. This was the kind of torture he could really get behind.

John showed up to offer support to Maddie. "Even though we're on opposite teams, love," he began, taking her hands in his, "I fully wish you the best of luck." After a quick kiss, John walked away; as he passed Kylie, he said, "Please, please win."

**Confessionals:**

**John: Sure, I want Maddie to do well, but I also want to win! Winning is fun, mates!**

Both girls got into their pods and Chris pressed a button in the booth, starting up the contraption. "This isn't so bad," Kylie noted. The velocity continued to speed up, faster, and faster, and faster.

**Confessionals:**

**Kylie: Maybe I spoke too soon…**

"ADVENTURE!" Maddie exclaimed happily. She loved this. It was the kind of deranged fun that she could really get behind.

Several minutes passed and Kylie was turning a violent shade of green while Maddie kept going singing _I Want to Hold Your Hand_. "Man, and I thought Izzy was messed up!" Chef exclaimed.

Around a minute later, Kylie threw up all over her side of the pod. "Short Maggot! OUT!" Chef exclaimed. The buzzer sounded and the pod slowed down to a halt.

Maddie eagerly leapt out and jumped into Chef's arms. "Say the words, Jude!"

"Crazy Maggot! VICTORY!" Chef exclaimed. "And my name is not Jude."

"Team StarKid wins once again!" Rosa exclaimed. Madeleine, the only one who was both still around and conscious, jumped for joy repeatedly.

***Team StarKid, Boys' Side***

"You fucking threw up on me!"

"You can't fucking play guitar!"

Orion and Jason had been going back and forth like this. Troy interfered.

"Both of you shut the fuck up! We fucking won! That's all that fucking matters, right!"

Orion and Jason reluctantly nodded. "Fucking moron," Orion muttered, causing Jason to punch him in the face, knocking him to the floor.

"Fucking jackass!"

"NO CURSING!" Chris exclaimed, popping into the cabin in a puff of purple smoke, causing all the boys to back away in terror and Orion to leap into Troy's arms.

***Team StarKid, Girls' Side***

Maddie pranced around the cabin, happy over winning the challenge for the team. Lauren glared as Christy brought Bliss into the cabin. "You can take Kylie's old bed, I guess…"

"Thank you! You are ever so kind!" Bliss said, simply oozing with kindness.

"Are you on some weird medication or something? Because there's a pool going on…"

"_I just can't wait to be king!_" Maddie exclaimed, doing the worm across the floor.

Lauren stared in confusion before turning her attention back to Bliss. "Slip up one time, Bitch, and you will be gone. G-O-N-E."

"Your spelling is so proficient!" Bliss said so happily. Lauren fumed.

**Confessional:**

**Bliss: *gagging for a good 10 minutes***

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Side***

The whole team had gathered to discuss the team's performance. Kylie lay down on a bed, barely able to focus; Annalisia, Eyrik, and Danny were all somewhat out of it as well, with Annalisia sitting next to Jada on a bed and Eyrik and Danny standing in opposite corners of the room. Ren stood off by himself, and John stood close to Danny.

Ren angrily punched the wall in frustration. "Twice _in a row_?" he asked furiously.

"We tried our best," Mickey said gently.

"Our best wasn't good enough!" Ren snapped at her. Seeing the hurt on her face, he muttered, "Sorry."

"Well, still, someone's got to be eliminated, mates," John pointed out, trying to get the conversation back on topic. "And that someone could be anybody, really."

**Confessionals:**

**John: By someone I mean Jada.**

"Let's vote out the newbie. She's got ties to the other team. Probably a traitor, too," Ren started with total conviction. "Just waiting to sell us out to all of those people on the other team."

Kylie, her fists shaking in anger, slowly rose to a sitting position. "Don't even start, bub. Who was the first one out this challenge? Which one of us almost won? You and me, respectively. You're such a big poser. As if I'd ever partner with someone like Jason? God. Get over yourself. You're such a rat fink."

"Are you trying to pick a fight with me?"

"I think I am!" Kylie fired back.

"STOP IT!" Mickey exclaimed. Her friend and her boyfriend. Why were they fighting?

"You've made her upset now," Ren growled.

"No, Ren! Stop it! Shit man, stop starting fights!" Mickey shouted, storming out of the cabin. Ren shot one last glare at Kylie before hurrying after his girlfriend, still leaving five people in the room.

"I'm this close to voting out Mr. Sunshine, if he wasn't such a physical asset," Kylie muttered.

Danny shrugged. "I don't know. There's plenty of options. Jada, John, Ren, all three lost out in that first round. And there are some people that we just can't trust on this team, some people who you never really know what they're feeling, or thinking."

**Confessionals:**

**Danny: I'm trying to stir up as many options as I possibly can. Without Bliss on the team, I've got no direct allies. Tossing the cards around is my best option at staying in the game. How is it that in a Fearsome Five alliance, there's only one member on my team?**

"Maybe it should be Jada," John sighed. "She helped vote out Miah! That was a big mistake in my book."

"And you," Jada pointed out, "Were busy encouraging your girlfriend before the challenge! Ren said there was a traitor, but I think it's you!"

"Don't get your knickers in a bunch now, misses!"

"What do those words _mean_!"

The two glared angrily at each other. Danny attempted to break the tension. "So, um, how about them Mets?"

Eyrik stared at him mysteriously before quickly leaving the room. Having no allies in the cabin, and having an inkling that Eyrik might be of some help to her, Kylie went after him, leaving a strange trio of John, Jada, and Danny in the cabin.

"What the bloody hell are Mets?" John asked in confusion.

***The Woods. You Know, the Kind With the Trees and Stuff.***

Mickey ran through the trees with tears in her eyes. She eventually ground to a halt, and sat down with her face in her knees, crying.

Ren approached her. "Hey," he muttered.

"Come to be more of a fucking jerk?" Chris appeared in a cloud of purple smoke but Annalisia turned on him and yelled, "NOT NOW MCLEAN!" Chris sulked off, muttering things like, "My show… damn teens… all I want… purple smoke… cursing…"

Ren sat down next to her. "I'm sorry. Really. It's just I'm so damn frustrated."

"We all are, Ren! But turning on everyone isn't going to get us anywhere. That much I know."

"Kylie didn't make it easier."

"Kylie is a different case."

"Oh yeah? Why?"

"Because I'm not dating her! I'm dating you!" Ren didn't have a good reply to that, so Mickey went on. "We're in this relationship together, and things just aren't going to work out if you keep snapping at me and yelling at everyone and just picking fights everywhere. It can't go on this way."

Ren looked Annalisia in the eyes. "What is this? An ultimatum? Change, or… or what?"

"Or maybe we're through." Annalisia dried her eyes and walked away, leaving an angry and confused Ren behind.

***Outside the Team Extraterrestrial Cabin***

Kylie came outside and looked around, trying to find where Eyrik had went. Taking a few steps forward she turned around, and there he was on top of the cabin.

"How'd you get up there so fast?" she called up. As usual, he didn't answer. "Whatever. I was hoping we could talk." The enigma swiftly leapt down, landing almost directly in front of her. "Flashy," she muttered. "So, who are you voting for? Mickey? Ren? Jada?" He shook his head for all three.

"John?" He shook his head again. "Me?" Another shake. That only left one. "Danny?" He nodded. "Um, why?"

Eyrik shrugged, and Kylie interpreted this to mean, _I don't really trust him_. "Well, hey, I've got no allegiances or anything. Maybe I'll back you up. I still haven't decided if I want to spare Ren yet."

She looked into the woods, and when she turned around again, the enigma was gone.

**Confessionals:**

**Annalisia: I really want things to work with Ren. I just… I just don't know…**

**Kylie: I normally don't like or trust boys. But Eyrik doesn't seem like a boy, he seems more like… I don't know. It's hard to explain.**

**John: I want to vote for Jada, but is that right? Is that best? WWLD – What Would Lennon Do?**

**Ren: I really hate ultimatums. Damn it…**

**Troy: Insert interesting plot twist here.**

* * *

**Team StarKid:** Bliss, Christy, Jason, Lauren, Madeleine, Orion, Troy

**Team Extraterrestrial:** Annalisia, Danny, Eyrik, Jada, John, Kylie, Ren

**Eliminated:** Jeremiah

**Team Extraterrestrial – you know who you are! – send in your votes ASAP please. Things are getting very dramatic here, and very fast! Especially Troy. That last confessional is full of drama, right? RIGHT? SAY THAT WE'RE RIGHT! Ok...ok...we're calm...*deep breath***

**And lets give a round of applause to Geoff! Our very first challenge testing veteran! :D Which veterans would you like to have mentioned through the course of the story? ^_^**


	8. Stuff a Sock in it, Peterson

Chris grinned as Team Extraterrestrial sat at the campfire pit. Unlike the previous occasion they'd been there, the contestants were feeling alone and divided. Annalisia and Jada sat next to each other, and everyone else – Danny, Eyrik, John, Ren, and Kylie – sat by themselves.

**Confessionals:**

**Annalisia: This is just too brutal. We're here again, and there's no trust or unity on the team. How can we ever pick up from this? And plus, with Ren and I… it'd be a miracle if things turn out alright.**

**John: Too losses in a row? Bloody hell. This is pretty unfathomable, I'll give you that.**

"So who had fun today?" Chris asked gleefully. There was no reply but glares from everyone. "You can literally reach out and feel the awkwardness!" Chris exclaimed, rubbing his hands together in pleasure. "This is fun. This is a fun time."

"Just get the hell on with it, McLean," Ren growled. He was in no mood to be toyed with tonight.

"Sheesh!" Chris replied, throwing up his hands in mock offense. "Try to make things a little bit lively, and everyone gets on your case…"

"I'm pretty sure a snail could get through this elimination faster," Jada called out sarcastically.

Chris shook his head at her sarcasm. "Testy. The drama sure is hot, tonight! But let's get on with it. This season, if or when you're voted off, you must walk down the Dock of Shame, climb the Stairs of Loserdom, and board the Shuttle of Failures, where you will promptly be flown off of this island. As in _forever._" He let them sink it in for a few seconds. "Oh c'mon! What's with those faces? It's not like you haven't already heard the speech." More glares were thrown his way and he chuckled.

**Confessional:**

**Jada: I wanted to just bash my skull repeatedly into that tree stump. It's more entertaining then listening to Chris.**

"My ducklings! First to get a marshmallow is… Kylie!"

Kylie smiled and reached up to get her marshmallow. "Awesome!"

"And… Danny!"

Danny sighed in relief and took the tasty treat.

**Confessionals:**

**Kylie: Honestly, I thought that –**

**Danny: - I had a huge target on my back.**

"And Silent Eyrik!"

The enigma got up, placed the marshmallow in his mouth, and stood with the other safe contestants. He briefly met eyes with Danny, and there was fire in them.

"Also safe is Pranky Mickey!"

Jada patted Mickey on the shoulders as she got up to her treat. Annalisia had a bittersweet feeling about it, however – it was Ren and Jada she was leaving behind.

"Bottom three," Chris said with a smirk. Not really much fun, is it?"

Jada sliced her finger across her throat menacingly. This was her second time being one of the last three, and while last time she was extremely nervous, this time she was just anxious to get the marshmallow and carry her team to victory tomorrow.

Ren rolled his eyes, unconcerned.

**Confessional:**

**Ren: As if these people would vote me off. They need me!**

John, however, was panicking. A lot. He nervously sweated and looked from side to side. Could it really be him on the chopping block?

"And still safe is… Jaders!"

"Obviously, McCrappy," Jada said with a yawn, as if the whole ceremony had bored her. She took her snack and hugged Mickey.

This left Ren and John. Chris shook his head. "Ren! You're quite possibly one of the most physical and wisest players on this team, being the last person left standing in the previous two challenge, but you did mess up today and your eternal surliness and jerkitude has been aggravating nearly everyone. John! You're a happy guy, got a steady girlfriend, and you're funny; probably really popular at school. But you still have your own share of haters and haven't been one of the strongest performers. The contestant who is _safe_ is…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

**Confessional:**

**John: Did he really just say haters? Really? And why are there dots everywhere! It worries me!**

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Ren."

Ren nodded his head and stood up. He walked over and shook hands with John before taking his marshmallow and joining his team.

"Sorry, Johnny," Chris said with sincere(ish) sadness, "You've been eliminated."

John grinned and took it in stride. "Well, it's been fun, guys. Thanks for the sendoff, Chris."

He got up and completely ignored Jada as he hugged Annalisia and then Kylie. He nodded over at Eyrik and high-fived Danny. He shook hands one last time with Ren and whispered into his ear, "Don't trust the girls." This comment left a look of confusion on Ren's face – why would John say that?

John walked down the Dock of Shame and climbed up the Stairs of Loserdom, but before he climbed into the Shuttle of Failures, he turned towards his former teammates and grinned. "One last thing before I go – Jada took out my mate Jeremiah. Not very good for our team, I say. He would've been pretty useful today!" And with that, he climbed into the Shuttle of Failures and flew away, screaming into the distance.

Team Extraterrestrial was left to deal with his parting words. Although most, if not all of them, had learned this at some point, they still left an impact. John, whether he intended to or not, had taken advantage of his team's disunity to focus it on one person.

Danny turned shocked to Jada. "He's right. Jeremiah sure would've been helpful. I'm sure you were only looking out for the team when you voted him out, though."

"Oh, stuff a sock in it, Peterson!" Annalisia exclaimed, coming to her friend's defense. Danny shrugged and headed back to the cabins alone. Eyrik soon came after him, looking at Jada and shrugging, as he'd already known.._Jeremiah was a good asset_, he thought.

Although it was no secret that Ren wanted Jeremiah gone, he took up with the rest of the team. "That's low," was all he said to her before he followed the other boys.

Kylie walked up to Jada, who was wrapped in the arms of Annalisia now. "Hey," she started, "For what it's worth, it doesn't matter to me. We're on this team together." And she hurried after the others.

Tears crept into Jada's eyes. "Is this how it's going to be, Mickey?" she whispered.

"I'm afraid so, Jaders," Mickey whispered in reply.

**Confessionals:**

**Danny: I already knew that Jada had voted for Miah, but I'm not going to lie – this is the perfect rallying point to make a big move in this game.**

**Jada: Stupid John. Stupid, vengeful John. He was never even funny. If I ever find him again, I swear!**

**Annalisia: Jada's torn up by this. There really isn't much more our team will be able to take at this point.**

**Ren: Of course I wanted Jeremiah gone, but he was useful. I've no loyalty to Jada, and if she hadn't voted for the guy, my vote wouldn't have meant squat. At least it was expected. This could be big.**

Maddie sat talking with Orion as they waited for Team Extraterrestrial to return. "And so then, the ninja-pirates were all like 'Give me the booty' and I was all like 'No never you crazy half-devil' and then…"

"John's gone," came Danny's voice as he walked by and quickly fled into his cabin. He had no clue how Madeleine would react to her boyfriend being voted off, and certainly didn't want to stick around to find out.

"Hey, you um… okay?" Orion asked as Eyrik flitted past into his cabin.

Maddie's eyes slowly brimmed with tears. "_And the boy that I love, voted off with a shove_," she sang solemnly. The musician hurried past her into his cabin and brought out his guitar.

"Care to sing?" he asked her.

She nodded and he started playing the one Beatles song that he learned.

As Ren walked past, he heard Madeleine start. "_When I find myself in times of trouble, Mother Mary comes to me. Speaking words of wisdom, let it be_."

Ren stopped in his tracks and turned to the scene. Orion continued his playing while Maddie sat on the railing and kept singing, and kept crying. Kylie arrived on the scene and joined Ren in listening.

"_And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me. Speaking words of wisdom, let it be_."

Annalisia and Jada, walking arm –in-arm and already teary-eyed, arrived on the scene.

"_Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be_."

Annalisia tugged herself away from Jada and drew herself closer to Ren. The two met each other's eyes and slowly drew into a kiss.

"_Whisper words of wisdom, let it be_."

**Confessionals:**

**Madeleine: …Good-bye, Johnny, my love.**

**Annalisia: That was just so heartwarming and touching. It just really makes me feel even guiltier about that unspoken decision to vote John off.**

* * *

**TDKH: ****Well, this certainly wasn't easy to write. John, I'll sincerely miss you. And I'll very miss enjoy writing for you. You were a real joy.**

**M&S: *all sad-eyed and whatnot* Johnny...we shall miss you dearly...TT_TT see you in the Aftermath...**

**_Votes:_**

**Annalisia: **Damn...who should I vote out? Now that Bliss is gone, I have no one to go after. I'd hate to do this...but John. He hasn't really showed any signs of helping out our team, and we can't afford another loss so early in the game.

**Danny:** Well, this is a toughie. I expect a vote or two thrown my way, but I vote for Ren. I'd like to work with John in the future, so I hope to keep him around a little longer.

**Eyrik: ***As always, Eyrik walks in the confessional, and sits down on the stool. As usual, he pulls out a piece of paper and writes down something on it. He doesn't show the audience his vote, but if you look carefully, the name 'Ren' is seen. He drops in the vote box and walks out*

**Jada:** It's really gotta be John, nothing to it. He's been getting on my nerves all the time this season and he's just asking for it.

**John:** My vote will be aimed at that demon, Jada! The fire in her eyes, mate… she voted for Jeremiah, so the least I can do is avenge him!

**Kylie:** John, I suppose. I thought maybe Ren, but this just makes more sense.

**Ren:** Bye bye, traitor girl Kylie.

**_Shuttle Cam:_**

**John:** Well, mates, I've done what I came here to do – play! I may not have done the very best of it, but I gave it a good shot. And my final act in the game is throwing good ol' Jade under the bus known as karma, hehe. Good one Johnny. Now to my darling Madeleine, don't feel sad for me. I know you'll probably miss me, and I'll miss you forever more. Until we can meet again, my love. Win this thing for me as I tried for Jeremiah. And when you get sad thinking about how this all turned out, just… Let it be.


	9. New Izzy is Scary

Chris stood gleaming on the Dock of Shame. "Last time, on Total Drama Reach for the Stars! Our fourteen remaining contestants competed in a three-stage hurl-inducing space-training challenge! Kylie and Bliss ended up swapping teams, leaving Danny without any backup on his teams. John, meanwhile, began to get suspicious and felt the heat, while Ren's surly attitude really got on the nerves of his entire team. After a demonstration from classic competitor Geoff, Team StarKid managed to pull off a win for the second time in a row. At elimination, to the shock of several, John ended up on a ride in the Shuttle of Failures – but before leaving, he warned Ren not to trust the girls and threw Jada under the bus with her entire team, leaving her to feel alienated. Dramalicious! So what will happen this time on Total! Drama! Reach for the Stars!"

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Side***

Danny awoke calmly for perhaps the first time since arriving to compete. A certain British boy usually woke up the others cheerfully. Looking around, Eyrik wasn't in the cabin – no surprise – but Ren was sitting awake on his bunk. Danny leapt down from his top bunk. "Something on your mind?"

Ren stared at him before deciding it was okay to trust him. "John told me something… interesting before he was eliminated," Ren growled.

"Interesting, how?" Danny asked, intrigued.

"He said that we shouldn't trust the girls."

"What? Like – Annalisia, Jada, Kylie – those girls?"

Ren rolled his eyes. "Well aren't they the only girls on our team? And they say you're smart."

"Yeah, yeah. But… why would he say that?"

Ren looked him in the eyes. "Well, it's obvious. He knew that they're the ones who voted him out."

***Mess Hall***

"It's weird," Orion muttered to Troy. "Usually John's here to act as like a deflector for Chef's anger, but without him…" Chef glared at the two boys while sharpening a big, pointy knife. "Suddenly I'm not so hungry anymore."

"Well I have no fear!" Troy exclaimed loudly. They were the only ones in the mess hall besides Chef.

Orion smacked him upside the head. "Jackass," he muttered.

Chef glared at them. "MAGGOTS! Get food or get _OUT!_"

"Dude, did you really just wet your pants?" Troy mocked with a laugh. Ori punched him in the arm.

As they got their slop, Chef took notice to Orion's black eye. "Musical maggot got into a fight?"

Troy grinned and stepped in. "Well, Chef, you should really see the other guy! I mean, you won't believe how he came out!"

Jason then walked in with bravado and swagger but abruptly stopped when he noticed Orion, Troy, and Chef all staring at him. "…Hi?"

"Well, you certainly messed him up," Chef mocked, laughing at Ori with Troy.

As the musician and ninja sat down, Jason joined them. "Hey, losers."

"Oh boy, it's time for some male bonding!" Orion squealed sarcastically.

"I know that you've just been _dying_ to get to know me better," Troy added on.

Jason glared. "Stop being idiots for just, like, two seconds. It's about our alliance."

"Yes?" Troy asked.

"I think that us three should partner up!" Jason exclaimed. "I mean, really, Bliss and Danny shouldn't be trusted, and…"

"Dude, you're like eating out of the palm of Bliss' hand. Please leave the strategizing and manipulating to the big kids, k?"

**Confessions:**

**Jason: Hey! I know I'm not the smartest guy, or person, or anything, but I'm just as capable as any of these other guys! It's time for me to make a big move to prove myself.**

***Team StarKid, Girls' Side***

Bliss and Lauren had already left for the showers, and Christy had just woken up. At first she thought she was alone until she noticed Madeleine cocooned up in her blankets. "Um, Maddie, are you, uh… okay?"

Maddie sniffled. "Johnny boy left last night," she whispered.

**Confessions:**

**Christy: First Jeremiah? Then John? I'd hate to know what's going on over at that team.**

"Oh, how're you holding up?" Christy asked, trying to be supportive to the closest thing she had to a friend here.

"The darkness is slowly creeping into my life," she replied stoically.

"Well, um… okay…"

"He's the one that makes me happy!" Maddie squeaked. "Where will I be without him?"

Christy wanted to help out her friend. "Well, you could, um, do your best to help the team! And to win! Because that's what John would want you to do!"

"John would want me with him," Maddie bemoaned.

Christy sighed. "When you were voted off last season, what'd John do?"

"He was very upset," Madeleine replied.

"But how far did he make it?"

"He hit the merge. He was a survivor," Maddie said with the faintest traces of a smile.

"So you should honor him by doing even better!" Christy smiled. "You can't let this eat you up. Okay? Now let's go get some breakfast."

After some more coaxing, Maddie finally got out of her cocoon. As she stood up, she pulled Christy into a hug. "Thanks for being a good friend," she muttered. Then, linking their arms, she yanked Christy as they both went skipping along, Maddie singing some crazy song about Irish hippos and Chrsity grinning.

***Girls' Showers***

Unable to reach an agreement, Bliss and Lauren ended up taking the two cold showers, leaving the warm one open. As they were drying off and brushing their hair, Annalisia and Jada walked in. "Look what the loser train dragged in!" Lauren called out, laughing smugly to herself. "Annaloser, I know you must be here to win enough money to make yourself look pretty, right?"

"Lay off of her," Bliss said before Annalisia could defend herself. With her fakest smile, she added, "Her beauty is priceless!"

**Confessions:**

**Annalisia: Those backhanded comments from Bliss are going to get her backhanded…**

"Oh, Jadork! Your eyes are just positively red," Lauren pointed out. "Crying because you realized how much of a loser you are?"

"No, Lauren, no! Jada, you should never cry because of how much of a loser you are!" Bliss exclaimed with another fake smile.

Mickey glared at them. "Lay off, bitches, she had a rough night!"

"Rough night, sure. Definitely not because you're a loser or anything."

Jada slowly walked forward until she was in Lauren's face. Ms. Snooty was unimpressed. "Listen, Whoren," Jada started slowly, "My night was rough, but it isn't as rough as your face is going to be after I'm through with it."

"As intimidating as that is," Lauren replied with a yawn, "I'm ready for breakfast. Have fun being losers, girls!"

As she left, Mickey punched the wall. "UGH! What's _wrong_ with that girl!"

"She is such a bitch, I know right!" Bliss exclaimed. "How mean is it of her to point out how much you guys are losers!"

"Okay, bitch, just GTFO," Jada exclaimed angrily.

Bliss rolled her eyes but left nonetheless. "But I was being so nice, too!"

That left the two best friends alone. "Are you okay?" Annalisia asked.

"I'm fine," Jada replied. "It'll take much more than those two bitches to take me down."

Mickey was unconvinced. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. Now let's hurry, I'm starved."

**Confessions:**

**Jada: It's going to be hard work getting back into the good graces of my team, but I can do it. I'm not going to go down without a fight!**

***Cabin Area***

Kylie stepped out of her cabin and noticed Eyrik sitting on top of the guys' side again. "Hey!" she called up. He noticed her and nodded. "Why are you up there by yourself?" she called, and he didn't respond. "Ugh. Boys and they're weird habits," she mumbled.

The enigma inwardly smiled. Kylie would make a good ally if it came to that.

Kylie then walked into the mess hall. Orion and Troy were sitting together, while a bummed Jason was sitting with Bliss. Lauren sat by herself, Maddie and Christy sat together, and Danny and Ren sat together in heated discussion. Kylie meant to go sit with her new teammates, Danny and Ren, but Orion motioned her over. After thinking it over fleetingly, she sat with her former teammates.

"Seems like it was a rough elimination last night," Orion began.

"It was dramatic, to say the least," Kylie replied.

"Blah, blah, drama, drama. Our team has none of that! We're awesome!" When both Kylie and Orion stared at him, Troy added, "So, uh, I'm gonna go get some more food."

Kylie rolled her eyes before resuming the conversation. "It was a really sweet thing that you did for Maddie last night," she confessed.

"Well, I've been known to be somewhat sweet on occasions. Shush, don't let it out, I've got a reputation as a total badass."

Kylie chuckled. "You're not so bad. I mean, for a guy."

Chris then walked into the mess hall, grinning, followed by Annalisia, Jada, and Eyrik. "Now that the gang's all together," he started before interruption.

"You yanked us out of the showers!" exclaimed a still-wet Jada.

"Details, details! First thing first. According to our new rule change," he started, pointing over at Ren, "Mister Angry Ren gets the chance to make a team swap! What's it gonna be, Ren?"

Ren stood up and smiled smugly at Danny. "Oh, I'll make a swap. I'll swap Christy for myself. Can't wait to get off of this team. Too dramatic for me."

**Confessions:**

**Ren: This team is way too dramatic for my taste. Sure, I'll be playing against my girlfriend now, but at least I'll be on a good team.**

**Christy: Just when Madeleine and I were starting to become really good friends, too…**

**Danny: It's as if the universe wants to totally cut me off from every single ally I could possibly possess in this game!**

Christy and Maddie had one quick hug. "See you at the merge," Maddie whispered into Christy's ear, causing her to smile. Christy was welcomed to Annalisia and Jada's table.

Ren joined Orion, Troy, and Kylie at their table. He and Orion shook hands, as they'd been on the same team last season. "Just don't play your guitar so much, okay?" Ren joked.

"This is a game changer," Lauren muttered to herself. What would it mean now that Ren had joined her team?

Chris took charge again. "Now, discussion _ends_. As you know, this season we're bringing back some -"

"Total Drama Classic Competitors," Troy interrupted.

"Stop doing that!" Chris whined, stomping his foot. "Now everyone, give a very not-so-warm welcome to… Noah!"

Noah walked in with a bored expression on his face and received a moderately warm welcome from the contestants. "So these are the new kids you've been torturing?" Noah asked. "They don't look like much. Especially that one over there," he added, pointing to Jada.

"Oh, hey, look, it's my cousin, the infamous sarcastic jerk who never made the merge," Jada mocked.

Noah rolled his eyes. "Whatever."

Orion nearly squealed. Standing up to shake his hand, he said, "Dude. You're my favorite Total Drama veteran. It's such a pleasure to meet you."

Noah stared at his hand in disgust. "Okay, sure. You can stop drooling at any time now."

As Ori sat down, Troy shook his head. "Man, and I thought you had a man-crush on Geoff…"

"Today's challenge," Chris began, "Is something that I like to call 'Super-Duper-Trust-Time'!"

"Fun," Noah commented, throwing his hands in the air in mock excitement.

Chris glared at him. "We're going to have three space-themed trust exercises, and pair you each according to how much you trust each other. Fun, right? Hehe. So anyways, at the very first stage, the Astronaut Walk, one contestant will be walking in a heavy astronaut suit through an obstacle course while the other contestant gives them directions."

"In the second stage, the Astronaut Meal, one contestant will have to prepare a delectable meal made solely out of Astronaut Food, and the other contestant must eat _all of it_."

"And then in our third and final stage, the Astronaut Three-Legged-Race, you'll be tied together and have to race through zero gravity to the finish line! In every stage, the first team to finish will receive a point for their team! And now, let's figure out the pairs…"

"In the first stage, it'll be Orion and Lauren versus Christy and Annalisia!"

"Oh, fuck this shit," Lauren mumbled, causing Chris to light up a gigantic neon sign that appeared out of nowhere that says _NO CURSING_.

Christy and Annalisia exchanged smiles. "We've so got this one!" Annalisia said supportively.

"In the second stage, it'll be Ren and Madeleine against Danny and Eyrik!"

"Oh geez," Ren muttered while an excited Maddie jumped up and down.

Danny grinned over at Eyrik. "Let's win this challenge, buddy!"

**Confessions:**

**Eyrik: *Holds up sign that says 'Danny Peterson' and rips it in half***

"And that leaves the third stage to be Troy, Jason, _and_ Bliss against Kylie and Jada!"

Troy let out a very blood-curling scream. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! NOT TWO OF THEM!"

"Suck it up, Ninja Nerd," Jason scoffed.

Bliss tickled his chin. "We're so going to win that one, Jase, baby."

Kylie and Jada locked eyes and Jada shrugged. "Hey, I figure we've got a better chance of winning that stage than they do," Jada commented, pointing at Troy, Jason, and Bliss.

Kylie nodded in agreement. "We can so do this."

"And what exactly does that leave me to do?" Noah asked. "I'm here to do something, aren't I?"

"Sheesh, Noah!" Chris exclaimed. "Who knew you'd be so desperate to work?"

"I just want to get this over with," Noah moaned.

"Fine! You'll be my personal assistant for the day. Hehe, brings up good memories, doesn't it?"

"Seriously? I mean… _seriously_?"

"Yes! Now go get me a latte and make it snappy!"

Noah grumbled as he left the mess hall. "But we're on a godforsaken island in the middle of godforsaken nowhere…"

Chris grinned. "Now, contestants, let's go have some fun!"

***Beach***

Orion and Annalisia stood blindfolded with astronaut outfits on while Lauren and Christy stood holding megaphones behind them.

**Confessions:**

**Orion: Lauren tormented Brooke last season, so we've already got a conflict because of that. But putting us together in a trust exercise is just asking for trouble.**

**Annalisia: I love Christy and all, but for a challenge where she's telling me where to go and what to do… We might be in some trouble.**

From the starting point, there was a narrow balance beam, several kiddie pools, a climbing wall, and then another balance beam to the finish line.

Chris looked at his watch. "Where _is_ Noah?!"

The scrawny boy finally hurried over, out of breath, holding a latte in his hand. "Here… you go… Chris…"

"Ew!" Chris exclaimed after taking a sip. "What kind of latte is this?"

"The kind that Chef makes after you've begged him," Noah answered with a roll of his eyes.

"Whatevs," Chris said, shoving Noah away and pulling up a bullhorn. "Contestants! Are you ready to go?"

"Start this damn challenge so we can win already," Lauren commented, rolling her eyes. "Three in a row will be really fun."

"You're, uh, going down!" Christy exclaimed, trying and failing to taunt the snooty girl.

"Whatever. Try not to trip up! Haha!"

**Confessions:**

**Christy: I was eliminated first last time because I tripped during the challenge… Lauren's so going down. She can't get away with bullying people like this!**

"Ready, set, go!" Chris exclaimed, pulling the bullhorn.

"All right, dweeb," Lauren started haughtily, "Five steps forward and then there's a balance beam, so don't fall off of your ass is going home tonight!"

"Always so kind and graceful!" Orion shouted through his suit. He took five steps but ended up tripping on the sand and fell on the ground.

"Mickey, just take a few more steps and then step onto the beam," Christy ordered. "Be careful!"

Mickey attempted this and found the beam, steadying herself, and quickly crossing over. "Awesome!"

Meanwhile, Orion was struggling. "No! Go to your right! Stop falling down! GET UP! To your left! Back a few steps!" Lauren screeched at him.

"Does she come with an off button?" Noah wondered, plugging in his ears.

Finally, Orion got onto the balance beam. "YES!" Lauren squealed. But then he fell off. "Oh, cut me a fucking break!"

"Lauren! No cussing! GEEZ!" Chris shouted at her.

"Oh, _fucking_ bite me!" Lauren shouted back at him. In response, Chris got up to her and blew the bullhorn in her face.

Annalisia was now making her way through the kiddie pools. "Which way now, Christy?" she asked, hurrying forward.

"It's uh, not that way!" she exclaimed as Annalisia fell headfirst into one of the kiddie pools. As she struggled to get out, Orion finally caught up.

"Now left, right, right again, and then run for it!" Lauren bellowed. Orion followed her instructions and avoided all of the kiddie pools but then ran headfirst into the climbing wall, knocking himself backwards into the sand. "Fucking idiot!" Lauren screeched, causing Chris to bullhorn her again and her to fall down in shock.

Meanwhile, Annalisia was struggling with the kiddie pools. "Feel free to help me anytime, Christy," she yelled angrily as she fell into a pool once more.

"Um, go forward now! Wait, step out of the pool first… now pick yourself up… now forward! Oh wait, watch out, there's another pool… okay, just pick yourself up, um… okay, good! Now go!" Christy sighed. This just wasn't her challenge.

Orion managed to pick himself up at the same time Annalisia arrived at the wall. "What a day for it, right?" Orion said sarcastically.

Following his voice, Annalisia reached over and pushed him off the wall. "Yeah, it sure is!" she laughed.

"Pick your fucking self up loser!" Lauren exclaimed shrilly. She turned around and grasped the bullhorn from Chris. "NOT NOW MCLEAN."

"You're at the top, Mickey!" Christy exclaimed. "Now just calmly climb down… or jump down, sure, that works!"

"I didn't jump, I fell!" Mickey yelled back at her. Giving up on listening to Christy she just charged forward and found the balance beam by accident. By the time Orion managed to scale the rock wall, she'd crossed the finish line. "WOOHOO!"

Chris ripped the megaphone from Lauren's hands and pushed her to the ground. "And that settles it! Team Extraterrestrial scores one point!"

"What? It's over?" Orion shouted in his astronaut suit. He then fell off of the rock wall. "Guys?"

Everyone started leaving, and he was left alone, blindfolded in the sand. "GUYS?"

***Mess Hall***

Ren and Maddie sat at one table while Danny and Eyrik sat at another one, waiting for their challenge to begin. Maddie and Ren were trying to make conversation but it was awkward. "Is something up, Maddie?" Ren asked.

Maddie shrugged. "Your team voted off John. It's just kinda hard. But woohoo! Live in the moment! Yeah!"

"Maddie," Ren said, pulling her close so only she could hear, "I didn't vote off John. Something's up on that team. John warned me not to trust the girls. I intend to do him right."

"It would mean a lot, sergeant butter finches!" Maddie replied, giving him a mock salute. "And now, I'll be preparing the food! Hehe!"

Danny and Eyrik sat in complete silence.

**Confessions:**

**Danny: Team Extraterrestrial, what can I say. Things are spiraling out of control. No one feels safe. There's a huge power void here because none of us trust each other, frankly. This all started with Jeremiah's elimination – the catalyst. That one single move is going to have reverberating effects for the rest of the game. As for me and Eyrik, right now, we're probably the two strongest players on the team. So he's a threat, but I have no allies. For me, the best move is to try and play against Jada until I'll have numbers on my side again. And when that happens… it's bye-bye, Eyrik…hm... I spend way too much time in here, don't I?**

Chris walked in, followed by Noah, who has hefting a very large crate. "Dude! You know my muscles are like… nonexistent."

"I know, hehe," Chris chuckled. Turning towards the contestants, he started to explain. "We're going to supply you with different packs of astronaut food in this here crate. What you'll then do is mix and mash them together into one little smush-ball like thing of food, and someone must fully eat it. Whoever accomplishes this first, wins. Seem simple enough? Sure! Now, who'll be doing the cooking?"

Maddie eagerly leapt out of her seat and raised her hand. "ME! ME! PICK ME! ME!"

"Well, I think Maddie wants to! How about you, Team Extraterrestrial? Who's the Master Chef? Hehe…"

Danny and Eyrik locked eyes and Danny gestured to Eyrik. "After you!" Eyrik turned to Chris and nodded.

"Good enough for me," Chris said with a shrug. "When I say go, you get up, take your packs, and cook! And… GO!"

Maddie and Eyrik both leapt up at the same time. Maddie stuffed her arms full with different packs, leaving Eyrik to take whatever she'd left behind. Maddie started ripping all of the packs open, laughing manically, and putting all the space food on the table.

Ren growled. "Shouldn't you have a strategy? I really don't want to be poisoned here, girl."

"My strategy is to be _awesomeeeeeeeeeeeeeee_!" she replied in a sing-song voice.

Danny just watched Eyrik cook. "So, nice weather, right?" Danny asked. Eyrik ignored him. "Well alrighty then."

Chris looked at his watch. "So, Noah, how've you been? Good?"

"No. New Izzy is scary," Noah answered, watching Maddie violently smush the food together as Ren slowly backed away.

"You and Izzy definitely had a thing."

"Or no."

"Yeah, there was a poll going on. Me, Duncan, and Alejandro placed bets on it."

"You're a sick freak, Chris McLean. A sick freak."

"Cool. Now go get me a latte."

As Noah walked out, Chris yelled, "TIME!"

Maddie stood, bouncing up and down on her tippytoes. "Well all RIGHT! Ren, BOTTOMS UP!" laughing crazily, she took her ball of smushed food and thrust it down Ren's throat at the same time Danny put Eyrik's in his mouth.

Danny and Ren both raced chewing when suddenly Danny started coughing and convulsing, falling off of his seat and onto the ground. Ren, meanwhile, was able to get all of his food down. "Not bad," he said in mild surprise.

Chris grinned. "Alright, Team StarKid! One point for you, and it's all tied up!" Looking at the convulsing Danny, he added, "Oh, and, um, somebody take care of that, okay?"

Chef Hatchet walked out grumbling and gave Danny the Heimlich maneuver. "Your welcome, normal maggot."

"You did that on purpose, didn't you," D.P. said accusingly when he could speak again.

**Confessions:**

**Eyrik: *sits there, arms crossed. His lips twitch up in a brief, accomplished grin, but left as soon as it arrived***

***Zero Gravity Chamber***

Chris walked in and Noah, soaking from a latte that Chris had spit on him, followed into the zero gravity chamber where the very first challenge had taken place. Standing, their ankles linked together, were Troy, Bliss, and Jason from Team StarKid and Kylie and Jada from Team Extraterrestrial.

Troy and Bliss were discussing the best way to quickly complete the challenge when Jason interjected. "Hey, ninja nerd, why don't you let the strongest guy throw in a few ideas?"

"Um, why don't you let the smartest guy make the ideas?" Troy suggested.

Jason turned towards Bliss to back him up but she shook her head. "Sorry, honey, but I think Ninja Nerd – um, I mean Troy – is right. Just chill out, okay?"

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Jase is a pawn, nothing but an attractive pawn. He's kinda like a lost puppy when he wants to try and make the ideas.**

**Jason: I'm really tired of not being respected in this game. Something's gotta change to get them to respect the great Jason!**

Kylie and Jada were ready to start. "We can so beat them!" Jada exclaimed.

**Confessions:**

**Jada: And if we don't, I'm probably taking that shuttle ride home.**

Kylie was ready for this. "We have to beat them. We just have to."

"You really want to whoop Jason, don't you?" Jada said with a grin.

"And Bliss if I can work that out, yeah."

"I'll do my best to help with that."

Chris stood up and pulled on a second bullhorn. "Now, contestants -"

"Blah blah zero gravity, blah blah race in a hurry, blah blah first team wins, blah blah elimination, blah blah Noah get me a latte. That about sum it up?" Troy interjected.

Chris glared at him. "Sure. Whatever. Now ready, set… ZERO GRAVITY!"

At his scream, the zero gravity went up and the teens were lifted up into the air. All the way on the opposite side of the chamber was the finish line. "Left leg," Bliss commanded. Her and Troy sent out their left legs while Jason sent out his right. Bliss shook her head. "Your _other_ left, Jase…"

"Oh!" Jason quickly fixed himself.

"Right leg!" Bliss commanded. However, instead of smoothly moving through the zero gravity, Troy ended up falling forward and Jason falling backwards.

"Hey, sweetheart," Troy pointed out, "I don't think it's really working."

Meanwhile, Kylie and Jada were making some good progress. "This isn't so hard," Jada pointed out. "It's kinda like swimming a bit."

"Except not like that at all," Kylie disagreed. "It's really just like finding your balance."

"Oh, you're right! Except you're totally wrong." Jada rolled her eyes. "And there goes the easy…"

The StarKid trio was starting to gain some ground. The falling had actually given them an advantage – Jason had fallen forward, Bliss was stuck in the middle, and Troy in the back, but Troy's attempts to move made things somewhat like leapfrog. Troy and Bliss would flip forward and then Jason back, and they kept on like that, slowly propelling themselves forward.

Kylie peered behind them. "Um, Jada… they're catching up."

"Keep swimming!" Jada commanded.

"Balancing!"

"Does it really matter what you're doing as long as you're winning?" Jada exclaimed.

"That's the J.J. I grew up with!" Noah yelled, throwing up an arm in actual excitement.

"Get over it, dude," Chris said, rolling his eyes.

The race was now neck and neck – it was an all out struggle. Both teams were now right next to each other. Troy grinned as Kylie met eyes with him. "Sorry, sweetheart, but you're losing this one."

Jada shook her head. "Are we really?" She then extended her hand and it just barely passed the finish line.

"Team Extraterrestrial wins!" Chris exclaimed as the zero gravity shut off, and all five teens landed on their faces on the ground.

***Team StarKid, Boys' Side***

"Well, we couldn't win all of them, I guess," Troy complained.

Ren grinned smugly. "Speak for yourself. Me and Maddie did pretty alright."

"Whatever," Jason interrupted. "Let's just get through this meeting so the Fearsome-" Orion and Troy both motioned for him to stop. "Uh, I mean, so our fearsome team can win the next one!"

Ren glared over at him. "Was that really what you were going to say?"

"Uh, yeah. M-mind your damn business! You're not even from this team! Should we even trust him? Urg!" Jason threw his hands up in exasperation, running out of the cabin.

"Is he always that stupid?" Ren asked Orion and Troy suspiciously. The two boys met eyes quickly and laughed a little too hard.

"Oh, that's just Jason! All brawn, no brain, unlike the rest of us manly men," Troy replied, smoothly covering Jason. "Now let's go meet with the girls, okay?"

**Confessions:**

**Jason: I told you that I'm not good with secrets…**

**Ren: Something fishy is going on here…**

Over at the girl's side, Bliss stood off by herself. Maddie hung upside down from one of the top bunks and Lauren sat on the bottom bunk opposite her. Jason walked in, followed by Orion, Troy, and Ren a few seconds later.

When nobody started, Ren opened up the meeting. "Well, me and Maddie did our challenge. We should be safe tonight. As far as anything else goes, I couldn't care less."

"Way to inspire the team!" Lauren replied mockingly. "Mister Angry Ren, you may have performed today, but you're still a Class-A jerk. The rest of us are all so nice towards each other."

Awkward silence fell. "I'm thinking about casting a vote for Lauren," Orion said passively. The snooty girl stared angrily at him. "Seriously, you give the worst directions ever. And you're a bitch," he added, knuckle touching a grinning Troy.

"Or maybe Jason," Troy commented. Jason, who was now standing next to Bliss made to argue. Bliss held him back, though, and squeezed his hand to keep him silent. "He's about as bright as a light bulb that hasn't been screwed in."

"Oh, shut your smug mouth, ninja nerd," Bliss scoffed.

**Confessions:**

**Troy: Ren was already suspicious, so I figured throwing Jase under the bus would throw him off the trail of the Fearsome Five. Who knows if I was successful?**

"Yay! Voting!" Maddie exclaimed happily. Ren shook his head. Who knew what went on in that girl's head?

"Maybe we should be gunning for you, mister musician," Lauren suggested. "You haven't really been much of a performer in any of the challenges, honestly."

"Oh, give it a rest!" Orion exclaimed. "At least I'm more well-liked than you."

"Maybe in your dreams, loser," Jason scoffed.

"Whatever," Orion muttered. "I'm out. Coming, Troy?"

Troy nodded. "Yeah, let's go, man."

Bliss turned to Jason. "Jase, darling, let's go find a private little corner, okay?"

"Um," Jason started, scratching his head, "I thought we should actually go meet with- OW!" he yelled as Bliss stomped on his foot. "Oh, um, sure, let's go."

That left Ren, Maddie, and Lauren alone in the cabin. "Listen, bitch," Ren began, "I don't like you, at all. But I think something's up. Let's just all try not to get blindsided, okay?"

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Side***

Danny lay on his bunk, alone. Eyrik was off again doing who knows what, and besides that he was the only dude on the team. Stealthily, Orion and Troy snuck in.

"So, what's up?" Danny asked, instantly sitting up. He was eager for some strategy talk.

"Well," Orion began, "Lauren's probably voting for me. Ren and Maddie, nobody knows what's going on with them. It was suggested that Lauren and Jason were heavy targets." He knuckle touched Troy, as they'd both worked on that.

Speaking of Jason, he entered with Bliss. "This guy," Bliss started, "Nearly gave us up!"

Danny smiled. "As long as everything remains carefully hidden, it's all fine. No worries. Now, who should we target?"

"I think we should target -" Jason started.

"Ren?" Bliss interrupted. "He's a real jerk. Nobody would miss him. And plus, if we hit the merge with him, he'll probably win solo immunity every time. How's that sound?"

"I'm game for it," Troy threw out. Orion only nodded, although he was uneasy about targeting the surly teen.

"And you, Jason?" Danny asked. "Do you think it's good?"

"Yeah, whatever," Jason mumbled. Not that anything he said really counted. He was just a pawn. An attractive pawn, but still a pawn.

"Then this Fearsome Five meeting is adjourned," Danny commenced.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Side***

"Finally!" Annalisia exclaimed in relief. "We're safe for a change! Victory!"

"VICTORY!" exclaimed Christy, Jada, and Kylie.

"I was worried I was on the block," Christy mumbled.

Jada supportively put a hand on her shoulder. "Me too. But hey, we won, so let's celebrate!"

***Team StarKid, Boys' Side***

Troy had decided to go explore in the woods, but Orion was feeling tired, so he'd returned to the cabin and was strumming his guitar. Jason walked in and they eyed each other.

"Loser," Jason scoffed.

"Whatever," Orion said, shrugging it off. After a few seconds, he added, "I don't feel good about the vote."

Jason looked over at him again. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, I don't necessarily feel right about voting for Ren. Do you comprehend my big words, Jason? Need me to talk slower?"

"Um, no, douchebag. I'm good. But uh, I kinda agree."

"What were you thinking, big guy?"

"Call me that again and I'll pummel you. So I was actually thinking about taking out one of the girls."

Orion sat up with an interested expression. "So you do have a brain in there. Who knew?"

"I need to prove myself," Jason mumbled. "It's time to make that one big move of the game."

Orion laughed. "Dude, sorry, but they beat you to it. It's called 'Jeremiah's Elimination'."

"Yeah, but still. All I know is, I'm not voting for Ren."

"And you know what? Me either."

But what they didn't know – at the entrance to the cabin was Ren. And he'd heard enough.

***Dock of Shame***

Chris stood with Noah on the Dock of Shame. "Well that wraps up another shocking episode!"

"Why am I still here?" Noah whined. "I want to go home!'

Chris lifted him up and threw him into the Shuttle of Failures as a response. Taking out a remote with a big red button on it, he pushed it, and Noah flew away, screaming something like '_Come die with us_'.

"Can't wait to see what happens next!" the host grinned, rubbing his hands. "And where's my latte!"

* * *

**Team Extraterrestrial: **Annalisia, Christy, Danny, Eyrik, Jada, Kylie

**Team StarKid: **Bliss, Jason, Lauren, Madeleine, Orion, Ren, Troy

**Eliminated:** Jeremiah, John

**And that wraps another chapter full of drama, drama… total drama! I really loved writing Noah. He's one of my all-time favorites. Which other veterans do ou want to see back? Leave it in a comment below! Also, up on my profile – TotalDramaKingdomHearts – there's a popularity poll of our competing contestants going on, so feel free to go over there and cast a vote! And here's a special treat!**

**_Shuttle Cam_****:**

**Noah:** Um, okay, what'd that button do? Is this a video camera? Okay, cool. Whatever. So these contestants aren't really that bad. Danny reminds me of Alejandro, though. A more...kind version of Alejandro. I think Jada could really win, if maybe she wasn't such a loser. That's just her cousin speaking. This thing is so unsafe… makes me wish for the Total Drama Plane… thank God I'm not competing anymore. And just to set the record straight, I did not have a thing with Izzy! Even though she was kinda pretty I guess... oh god, why did I bring that up… I'm just going to stop talking now.


	10. I Want a Recap

**Before this chapter starts, there's something I want to clear up. During the challenge, Eyrik did not intentionally attempt to make Danny choke. It was an accident. He took pleasure in it, nevertheless, because the two were enemies. Eyrik wouldn't sabotage his team on purpose just for revenge.**

* * *

Later that night, a grinning Chris stood at his regular Campfire Ceremony post. Team StarKid was gathered together in front of him; Orion and Troy sat together, with Maddie and Ren together a little bit off. Lauren sat by herself, and Jason sat next to Bliss.

"Welcome boys -"

"And girls!" Troy interrupted.

Chris shot him a glare before continuing. "So, you guys lost this challenge. It's your second time at the Campfire Ceremony, but don't worry. There's no reward challenge to save you this time. It's elimination time, Team StarKid!"

**Confessions:**

**Jason: I wish he would just get on with it! I tried to make a big move this time. I hope it paid off…**

**Bliss: All's going according to plan. Ren will be on his way home, courteous of the Fearsome Five.**

"So who's ready to get eliminated?" Chris called out with a grin.

"Ugh. Just get on with it, McLean," Lauren called out, rolling her eyes.

Chris shot her an annoyed look before continuing. "This season, if or when you're voted off, you must walk down the Dock of Shame, climb the Stairs of Loserdom, and board the Shuttle of Failures, where you will promptly be flown off of this island. As in _forever._" He let them sink it in for a few seconds.

"Now when I call your name," he started. Seeing Troy about to interrupt him, he threw a rock at the ninja, who expertly knocked it out of the air.

"You will be safe, blah blah, marshmallows, yum yum, bottom two, elimination elimination. About sums it up, right, chums?" As Chris threw another rock at Troy, Orion smacked him across the head and called him a jackass, causing Chris to throw a rock at him for language.

Regaining composure, Chris grinned again. "All righties! Safe from elimination… mister ego, Troy!"

Troy grinned, bumped fists with Ori, and then did a flip in the air to retrieve his marshmallow.

"Show-off…" Chris mumbled. Turning back to the contestants, he continued. "Also safe is… Mad-e-leine!"

"Yay! SAFETY!" she exclaimed, tightly embracing a surprised Ren before running up to get her marshmallow.

"And Miss Bliss is safe too!"

"Obviously," Bliss purred, tickling Jason's chin to go get her marshmallow.

Chris turned to the four remaining contestants – Jason, Lauren, Orion, and Ren. "All four of you left sitting have received at least one vote. The next contestant safe is… Orion!"

Orion grinned and turned back to his teammates. He exchanged a glance with Jason, who shrugged and gave a grim grin before taking his marshmallow.

**Confessions:**

**Orion: Jason and I may be mortal enemies, but I think we've got one thing in common. We both want to prove ourselves.**

"And also safe is Jason the brawn!" Chris exclaimed.

Jason grinned and took his marshmallow. Merging with the other contestants, he turned around to face the two still sitting down – Ren and Lauren.

Chris stared at both Ren and Lauren. Both had been in the hot seat before; Lauren was sitting calm and unimpressed, while Ren was beginning to fume about being in the bottom for the second time in a row. "Ren! You're the new guy on the team, and even though you were one of the people to deliver a win during the challenge, your attitude is a major turn-off and your strength makes you a threat. Lauren! In this challenge, you really messed up, and you're kind of a huge bitch, but you've proven in the past to be a strong supporting member of the team previously. The contestant who is _safe_ is…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

**Confessions:**

**Troy: Um… I'm a little bit concerned by these dots everywhere…**

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Ren."

Ren grinned smugly and stood up. Mock saluting Lauren, he walked over to get his marshmallow from Chris.

"Lauren! You've officially been e-lim-i-nat-ed!"

Lauren sat there unmoving, slightly scaring the others. She slowly stood up and faced the others. "You… you… you IDIOTS! You absolute losers! How is this even _possible_? You NEED ME! You're _nothing_ without ME! HOW!"

Bliss suspiciously eyed her teammates. "Yes, how indeed…"

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Okay, I'm not a mathematician or anything, but four members of an alliance were on a seven-person team, and that's a majority, right? But somehow Ren is still in this game. Oh, someone is _so_ in trouble…**

Lauren, still ranting, refused to go down the Dock of Shame, so Chef Hatchet had to come out. He lifted her over his shoulder and hefted her down the Dock of Shame, up the Stairs of Loserdom, and threw her into the Shuttle of Failures. Right before takeoff, Lauren saw Jason waving at her and shrieked as the shuttle flew off, her high-pitched screams fading off into the distance.

"Well… that certainly was dramatic!" Chris said with a grin. "Back to your cabins, pipsqueaks!"

As they headed off, Orion whispered to Jason, "You've made your big move, biceps. Time to see how it plays out."

**Confessions:**

**Orion: I may or may not have had a hand in this elimination, but nobody has to know that…**

As the musician and the ninja decided to race back to the cabins, Ren approached Jason and growled into his ear. "I know about your plot, idiot. And I can assure you things aren't going to go your way."

Ren hurried off. The next to approach Jason was Madeleine. "_And the snooty bitch, voted off in a tricky glitch_…" she sang, skipping off.

"I sure am popular today," Jason grumbled as Bliss approached him.

Rubbing his arm seductively, she purred, "So, Jase, honey… how do you figure this happened?"

"I… I don't know," Jason said quickly, starting to sweat.

"Seems like a bit of a… secret," she whispered, blowing on his neck.

"NO MA'AM THERE IS NO SECRET NOTHING HAPPENED GOOD NIGHT SLEEP TIGHT," he shouted, hurrying off to the cabins, leaving Bliss in the dust.

**Confessions:**

**Jason: Man, I really suck at secrets!**

**Bliss: He knows what happened-I mean its obvious-and I'm going to find out if it's the last thing that I do.**

***Cabins***

Eyrik was off hiding on the roof of the cabins, and Danny sat on the steps to the cabins. Annalisia, Jada, Kylie, and Christy lay on the ground together, watching the stars.

Troy came running up, throwing his fists into the air and wooping loudly. "I'm Number One! I'm Number One!"

Orion came wheezing behind him. "Why are you so… fast?" he gasped, collapsing on the ground. Kylie and Christy laughed.

"Who got voted out?" Annalisia asked, standing up. Before Troy could answer, Danny hurried over and yanked Troy by the arm and dragged him into his cabin.

"I want a full recap," he shouted as he closed the door.

Annalisia stomped her foot. "Curse you, D.P!"

Ren and Madeleine arrived next. Jason came thundering behind them, almost knocking them down. "Watch where you're going, brickhouse," Ren growled.

"SORRY THERE ARE NO SECRETS I AM TIRED GOOD NIGHT WORLD ZZZ SNORE," Jason spoke loudly as he shut the door to his cabin. Everyone watched him for a few minutes. Kylie broke the tension.

"Those damn boys," she muttered, causing the others to laugh.

"So it was either Bliss or Lauren," Christy pointed out.

Jada crossed her fingers excitedly. "Please, oh please, let it be both…"

Bliss walked up at that moment and everyone clapped in mock joy. "And the bitch is back!" Jada said sarcastically.

"Bliss! Recap! Now!" Danny shouted before Bliss could retort. She blew some fake kisses and hurried in.

"Curse you, D.P!" Jada exclaimed, mocking Annalisia.

Eyrik, unknown to anyone, had stood up and watched the events unfold. _What role does Troy have in this?_ He thought to himself.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

Danny stood pacing while Troy and Bliss sat on the bunk. They nervously exchanged a look.

"Alright, story time. Why is Ren still here? And how'd Lauren get eliminated?"

Troy shrugged. "Hey, man, I voted for Ren as per the plan. Thrilled Lauren is gone, though."

"Me too," Bliss added. "Thrilled."

"But _how_?" Danny stressed. "Statistically, it's an impossibility. Four votes against Ren – that can't even be matched."

Bliss snorted. "Ask Jason."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," Bliss started, "I asked him about it and he got all loud like he always does when he's hiding something. So if he voted for Lauren, that leaves three votes against four. End of discussion."

Danny was unconvinced. "Nope, Lauren wouldn't have voted for herself. That would leave 3-3-1, a tie. Something doesn't add up." Danny shook his head for a few minutes. "Tell me again how it went down. Did Chris mention anything about the votes?"

"He did," Troy remembered. "Orion, Jason, Lauren, and Ren were down, and Chris said they all received at least one vote."

"From this we can assume Lauren voted for Orion. They've been enemies for a long time, so that covers her one vote. You two are confirmed to have voted for Ren, so that leaves four votes left. Ren didn't vote for himself, so let's assume he voted for Jason. And that leaves three votes for Lauren."

Bliss rolled her eyes. "Wow, you sure are a genius!"

**Confessions:**

**Troy: What is it with everyone being so smart and good at problem-solving. I swear, if D.P. calls me Watson…**

"Three votes?" Troy asked confused. "Um, Jason, Madeleine, and…"

Danny faced them with a grim expression on his face. "Orion."

***Outside***

Ren had gone into his cabin; Maddie, Bliss, Christy, Jada, and Mickey had all went to sleep as well, leaving just Ori and Kylie awake.

Ori was pointing out some constellations to her. "How do you know all of these?" Kylie asked him. "You don't seem like someone who spent time behind a telescope."

Ori chickled. "Ren taught them to me last season. Most of these are ones he made up himself. He's a pretty cool guy underneath all the anger."

"And also a Class-A jerk," Kylie added begrudgingly.

"Well, sometimes."

Kylie sighed. "Listen, boy. I don't know why, but I'm beginning to think you aren't pond scum like pretty much every other guy."

"Thanks, I feel all tingly inside."

Kylie rolled her eyes. "Whatever. You're better than Jason, at any rate."

Orion sighed. "Hey, I'm not going to defend him or anything, but the guy has his moments."

"He really doesn't. He just hurt me so bad, you know? Hard to trust guys now."

"I know, Kylie. I know."

They lay there for a few minutes before Kylie yawned. "I think I'm going to turn in for the night." As she stood up, she stumbled and fell. Orion tried to catch her but she fell on top of him, and suddenly their faces were inches away from each other's. Kylie blushed.

A few seconds later, Orion asked, "So, uh, how long you planning on staying there?"

Her face a bright shade of red, Kylie quickly got up and raced into her cabin. "Night!" she shouted.

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

"Back off, loser," Jason said as Ren approached him.

"No way, man of steel," Ren replied, grinning savagely. "There's something going on here. You're going to tell me what it is. Savvy?"

Jason sweated furiously. "No, man, seriously! I have no idea what you're talking about! NO IDEA!"

Ren reared up his fist. "Okay, Jason, I believe you. But my fist here is going to need some convincing."

Jason clutched Ren's fist in his own hand. "Sorry, buddy, but that's not happening."

Troy then walked in to the cabin, whistling. "Hey, guys!" he called out. Looking at the situation before him, be slowly walked out.

Ren sighed and shoved Jason out of the way. "We're not through with this, got it, pretty boy?"

"As if," Jason retorted.

Troy then walked in to the cabin, whistling. "Hey, guys!" he called out. "Awesome! No more awkwardness! Love it!"

"Go to sleep, ninja nerd," both Ren and Jason shouted angrily.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

Danny had sent Bliss and Troy out, and Eyrik hadn't returned, leaving him alone.

"Orion and Jason… both of you have made some big mistakes. Sorry, guys. It's time to cut you loose."

* * *

**Well, that closes another chapter! I know most of you will be thrilled to see Lauren leave, but personally I'm going to miss her a bit. Oh, well. Anyways, the next chapter is going to be the first day off, so look forward to that! There's many tricks, surprises, and shocks in the future, so stay tuned!**

**_Votes:_**

**Bliss:** It's Fearsome Five time, darlings! Good-bye, jerky Ren!

**Jason:** It's time for me to prove myself and make a big move! Last season, I came here for the babes, but now, I'm here to win. First step – sorry, babe, but I'm voting for Lauren.

**Lauren:** I'm voting for that arrogant musician jerk Orion. Adios, loser!

**Madeleine:** _Lalala_, I vote for Lauren, hehe! She messed with Christy so bye-bye!_  
_

**Orion:** I hate to betray the alliance, but hey, I'm not voting off Ren. So I vote for Lauren.

**Ren:** Hmph. I know they're up to something. But I'd rather see Jason gone.

**Troy:** Woohoo! Fearsome Five strikes! Peace out, Ren, you'll be missed, dude!

**_Shuttle of Failures:_**

**Lauren:** No! Those losers! And _Jason_?! Of all people, _Jason_?! He masterminded my elimination? Gah! They'll never win a challenge without me. But it's whatever. All those losers are going down! I was blindsided, I'm big enough to admit it. Angry Ren was right, something's up. That jerk better do something to avenge me…

**Sorry it took so long to get this up TT_TT school, school work, blah blah blah...welp, next chappie is the Aftermath ^_^ yaaay~**


	11. More Like Insane

Beatrice and Rain are shown on the couch in the middle of the Aftermath room.

"Hello fans of Total Drama and us!" Rain said with a smile.

"And welcome to the second Aftermath of the season!" Beatrice added, also smiling brightly at the camera. "I do hope you're enjoying this season! Cause I sure as hell am! How 'bout you Rain?" he blinked.

"When did the Aftermath turn into a cheesy early morning talk show?" he asked.

"Yeah!" Kelvin shouted from the sidelines. "Where's the embarrassment? Where's the pain? The _drama?!_"

"Hey! Peanut!" Trixie shouted, "I didn't ask from any commentary from the Peanut Gallery!"

"Yet." Thunder said with a smug look.

"Anyway," Rain interrupted, "Let us turn our attention to the giant screen over our heads!" Trixie turned the screen on.

"Clip one, Team Trade!"

* * *

_ "You know," Christy started, "I just wish we could trade Lauren to the other team, or something. It'd make things so much easier."_

_Chris then popped up behind her. "Trade teams, you say?"_

_"AAH!"_

_"Well, that's exactly what's going to happen!"_

_Everyone turned to face him. "What do you mean, Chris?" Danny called over._

_Chris gave him a toothy grin. "I am glad you asked, Danny! Here's the new policy we're introducing this season – if you end up in the Bottom Two of an elimination ceremony, and survive, you'll be offered the opportunity to trade a member of your team for a member of the opposing team. So Eyrik, would you like to make a trade?"_

_Eyrik stood up and shook his head._

_"When'd he get here?" John asked, confused._

_"He wasn't in here a few minutes ago," Jason pointed out._

_"Silence!" Chris shouted. Turning to Eyrik with a devilish smile, he asked, "So, Eyrik, trade or no trade?" he thought for a moment._

_A small nod of the head was a reply. Yes._

_"Well, who and for who?" Chris asked the enigma._

_Eyrik thought it over for a few seconds before pointing at Bliss. "Hey!" she exclaimed. Danny's face paled._

_Eyrik then pointed at Kylie. "Me?" she asked, surprised._

* * *

"Oo, interesting policy, Luther!" Trixie said. She turned to the Peanut Gallery, the sign glowing over their heads. "Okay, Peanuts, any comments?" They studied the clip again.

"Jason was right," Deacon pointed out. "Eyrik really wasn't there before..." Tonia nodded.

"Look, in the clip right before Chris came in, this chair was empty." she circle the empty spot on the table. "But right after Chris appeared, Eyrik is seen sitting there." she circled Eyrik in the same spot. They all studied the two pictures.

"So," Rain said, breaking the silence, "Eyrik is a ninja?"

"Don't say that around Troy." Kelvin pointed out with a slight laugh. Thunder was still studying the clip on her tablet.

"Look at this." she says, zooming in on D.P and circling his face. "This is after Eyrik switched Bliss for Kylie. His face is pale here." Everyone looks at the screen.

"He's definitely surprised." Deacon said. Tonia shrugged,

"Or something went wrong."

"_Or,_" Trixie added, a devious grin on her face, "Danny has a crush on her!" everything went silent. Rain and Kelvin had disgusted looks on their faces, while the rest of them shook their heads in disapproval.

"Can...can we continue?" Rain said, "Before I vomit?" Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Okay! Clip two! Vomit Challenge!"

* * *

_"Oi! My insides are going to soon become my very, very outsides!" John exclaimed. Talking to Maddie next to him, he said, "How you holdin' up, dear?"_

_"I LOVE THIS! FASTER!" she exclaimed, laughing manically._

_"I can respect that," Geoff said, bumping knuckles with Chris._

_Ren became the first to throw up. Chef appeared out of nowhere with a buzzer and yelled, "JERKY MAGGOT! OUT!"_

_Ren dismounted from his machine, grumbling, when Christy's puke coated the back of his head. "Sorry," she said shyly as Chef rang his buzzer._

_"Last Place Maggot, OUT!"_

_A few seconds later, Jada puked, and John followed right after. "I'm as dizzy as a bee," the Brit commented as he dismounted, and then collapsed onto the ground._

_"Sarcastic Maggot and British Maggot! OUT!"_

_"How you holding up?" Ori called over to Troy._

_In response, Troy threw up very much. Lauren followed soon after._

_"Ninja Maggot, Snooty Maggot! ELIMINATED! End of Part One!"_

_*Time Jump*_

_As soon as the stumps started moving up and down, Orion tumbled backwards and collapsed on his back._

_"Musical Maggot! OUT! Hehe."_

_"My spine," he moaned and then passed out. Maddie looked down at her fallen teammate before shrugging, obviously not concerned._

_With the others, Eyrik was faring reasonably well, concentration and focus on his mind._

_Danny wasn't doing well in the challenge at all. Danny shrugged and fell off of his stump, on his hands and knees on the ground. Eyrik lost his balance next, keeling over and sputtering._

_"Normal Maggot, Quiet Maggot! OUT!" The two contestants locked eyes with each other and it was very clear that both viewed the other as an enemy. Danny grinned and waved before passing out. Jason then threw up all over the still-unconscious Orion and fell off of his stump._

_"Extremely Attractive Maggot! OUT!"_

_"Keep it up, Mickey!" came encouragement from Jada as she woozily stumbled over. Mickey shook her head and yelled, "I tried!" before being forced to jump off of her stump, running over to Chris, puking on him, and cowering on the ground._

_"Pranky maggot, OUT! End of Part Two!"_

_*Time Jump*_

_Several minutes passed and Kylie was turning a violent shade of green while Maddie kept going singing _I Want to Hold Your Hand_. _

_"Man, and I thought Izzy was messed up!" Chef exclaimed._

_Around a minute later, Kylie threw up all over her side of the pod. "Short Maggot! OUT!" Chef exclaimed. The buzzer sounded and the pod slowed down to a halt._

_Maddie eagerly leapt out and jumped into Chef's arms. "Say the words, Jude!"_

_"Crazy Maggot! VICTORY!" Chef exclaimed. "And my name is not Jude."_

* * *

"Tough challenge." Rain said, "Almost makes me glad I'm not back." Trixie nods in agreement.

"Any comments, my dearest Peanuts?" It was quiet for a while, before Kelvin finally asked:

"Is Chef gay?" Everyone began to laugh. "I'm serious! Calling Jason "Extremely Attractive"? That's creepy..."

"Look at this guys!" Trixie said, rewinding to where said hottie threw up on Orion. She played in in slow motion, causing laughs to emit from the Peanut Gallery.

"Dude! It coats his entire face!" Deacon says with a laugh. Tonia had a grossed-out look on her face.

"Eww..." Thunder shows various clips of Madeleine.

"I like this chick. She's cool." Kelvin snorted.

"More like insane." she shrugged.

"Not necessarily a bad thing."

"Next clip!" Rain and Trixie shouted together, "Annalisia and Ren!"

* * *

_Ren approached her. "Hey," he muttered._

_"Come to be more of a fucking jerk?" Chris appeared in a cloud of purple smoke but Annalisia turned on him and yelled, "NOT NOW MCLEAN!" Chris sulked off, muttering things like, "My show… damn teens… all I want… purple smoke… cursing…"_

_Ren sat down next to her. "I'm sorry. Really. It's just I'm so damn frustrated."_

_"We all are, Ren! But turning on everyone isn't going to get us anywhere. That much I know."_

_"Kylie didn't make it easier."_

_"Kylie is a different case."_

_"Oh yeah? Why?"_

_"Because I'm not dating her! I'm dating you! We're in this relationship together, and things just aren't going to work out if you keep snapping at me and yelling at everyone and just picking fights everywhere. It can't go on this way."_

_Ren looked Annalisia in the eyes. "What is this? An ultimatum? Change, or… or what?"_

_"Or maybe we're through." Annalisia dried her eyes and walked away, leaving an angry and confused Ren behind._

* * *

"Oooooh~ snap!" Rain said, snapping his fingers dramatically. "She tooold~ him!" Trixie crossed her arms.

"He may be hot, but he's such an asshole!"

"Man...poor Mickey." Tonia said sympathetically. "Who would've thought that they'd break up?" Kelvin shrugged.

"Who cares? If he wants to be an asshole, it's his loss." Thunder nodded in agreement. Deacon zoomed in on Mickey.

"Ha! So she _does _cry!" he said, taking enjoyment out of seeing his enemy cry. Thunder smacked him upside the head.

"Don't be an asshole!"

"Anyway! Moving on!" Trixie said.

"Clip four! John vs Jada!"

* * *

_ "One last thing before I go – Jada took out my mate Jeremiah. Not very good for our team, I say. He would've been pretty useful today!" And with that, he climbed into the Shuttle of Failures and flew away, screaming into the distance._

_Danny turned shocked to Jada. "He's right. Jeremiah sure would've been helpful. I'm sure you were only looking out for the team when you voted him out, though."_

_"Oh, stuff a sock in it, Peterson!" Annalisia exclaimed, coming to her friend's defense. Danny shrugged and headed back to the cabins alone. Eyrik soon came after him, looking at Jada and shrugging._

_"That's low," was all he Ren to her before he followed the other boys._

_Kylie walked up to Jada, who was wrapped in the arms of Annalisia now. "Hey," she started, "For what it's worth, it doesn't matter to me. We're on this team together." And she hurried after the others._

_Tears crept into Jada's eyes. "Is this how it's going to be, Mickey?" she whispered._

_"I'm afraid so, Jaders," Mickey whispered in reply._

* * *

"Ouch," Rain said, "John really threw her under the bus there...my poor poor Jada!" he held up a picture of her, tears forming in his eyes. "I finally got to finish this for you, my love! This shall be your present from me when you win!"

"Ahem!" Deacon said. "_If _she wins." Trixie shook her head at the screen.

"Everything is going wrong for Jaders this season."

"I agree." Tonia said. "First Jeremiah's flirting and now this?" Trixie shot her a look and threw a huge book in her direction.

"Don't talk about it!" she shouted as the book smacked Tonia in the face, sending her crashing to the ground from her seat. Thunder and Kelvin snickered as Deacon helped her up. Tonia and Trixie shot evil looks at each other.

"So!" Rain said, breaking the awkward silence. "Any other comments?"

"As much as I hate to admit it," Thunder said, "I don't think Jada is gonna win. She had a lot of support last season, but with all this negative energy towards her from her teammates, she might be the next to go."

"Sucks for her." Kelvin said, indifferent.

"Clip five! Bliss being...nice...? What!?"

"Can't wait to see this one..."

* * *

_"Look what the loser train dragged in!" Lauren called out, laughing smugly to herself. "Annaloser, I know you must be here to win enough money to make yourself look pretty, right?"_

_"Lay off of her," Bliss said before Annalisia could defend herself. With her fakest smile, she added, "Her beauty is priceless!"_

_"Oh, Jadork! Your eyes are just positively red," Lauren pointed out. "Crying because you realized how much of a loser you are?"_

_"No, Lauren, no! Jada, you should never cry because of how much of a loser you are!" Bliss exclaimed with another fake smile._

_Mickey glared at them. "Lay off, bitches, she had a rough night!"_

_"Rough night, sure. Definitely not because you're a loser or anything."_

_Jada slowly walked forward until she was in Lauren's face. Ms. Snooty was unimpressed. "Listen, Whoren," Jada started slowly, "My night was rough, but it isn't as rough as your face is going to be after I'm through with it."_

_"As intimidating as that is," Lauren replied with a yawn, "I'm ready for breakfast. Have fun being losers, girls!"_

_As she left, Mickey punched the wall. "UGH! What's wrong with that girl!"_

_"She is such a bitch, I know right!" Bliss exclaimed. "How mean is it of her to point out how much you guys are losers!"_

_"Okay, bitch, just GTFO," Jada exclaimed angrily._

_Bliss rolled her eyes but left nonetheless. "But I was being so nice, too!"_

* * *

"Wow...how many cruel nicknames can we count?"

"Annaloser!" Kelvin holds up a large card with a one on it.

"Jadork!" Thunder holds up a card with a two on it.

"Whoren!" Deacon holds up a three.

"Bitch!" Tonia holds up a four. Beatrice and Rain clap, and balloons fall from the ceiling.

"Neeeeeew record!" Rain says with a smile.

"How much you wanna bet Bliss' attitude is gonna slip up in the next 5 episodes?" Kelvin asks aloud.

"Nah," Deacon disagrees, "She'll probably revert to being a bitch _after _the merge."

"20 bucks it's before."

"Deal." they shake hands.

"Clip six, D.P vs Eyrik!"

* * *

_Danny and Ren both raced chewing when suddenly Danny started coughing and convulsing, falling off of his seat and onto the ground. Ren, meanwhile, was able to get all of his food down. "Not bad," he said in mild surprise._

_Chris grinned. "Alright, Team StarKid! One point for you, and it's all tied up!" Looking at the convulsing Danny, he added, "Oh, and, um, somebody take care of that, okay?"_

_Chef Hatchet walked out grumbling and gave Danny the Heimlich maneuver. "You're welcome, normal maggot."_

_"You did that on purpose, didn't you," D.P. said accusingly to Eyrik when he could speak again._

* * *

Kelvin glared at the clip.

"I'm starting to really hate this Eyrik guy." he growled. Trixie rolled her eyes.

"I love how Chris didn't even care that Danny was dying right in front of him." Tonia zoomed in on Eyrik, as he was standing in the background watching Chef give Danny the Heimlich maneuver. He was standing cross-armed, a very slight grin on his face. She circled it.

"Do you see that?" she asked, pointed.

"Is Eyrik...?"

"Smiling?!"

"See!" Kelvin said, standing, "The guy took joy outta my friend choking to death! The bastard did it on purpose!" Thunder rolled her eyes.

"Calm down, Kel. I'm sure he's just a bad cook. Besides, it _is _kinda funny. I mean...his face is all purple." she chuckled.

"Can we move onto the next clip?!"

"Of course!" Rain said, smiling.

"Clip seven! Jason's secret!"

* * *

_Ren approached Jason and growled into his ear. "I know about your plot, idiot. And I can assure you things aren't going to go your way."_

_Ren hurried off. The next to approach Jason was Madeleine. "_And the snooty bitch, voted off in a tricky glitch…_" she sang, skipping off._

_"I sure am popular today," Jason grumbled as Bliss approached him._

_Rubbing his arm seductively, she purred, "So, Jase, honey… how do you figure this happened?"_

_"I… I don't know," Jason said quickly, starting to sweat._

_"Seems like a bit of a… secret," she whispered, blowing on his neck._

_"NO MA'AM THERE IS NO SECRET NOTHING HAPPENED GOOD NIGHT SLEEP TIGHT," he shouted, hurrying off to the cabins, leaving Bliss in the dust._

* * *

"Oooooo~" Rain said with a grin, "Looks like somebody got a dirty little secret!"

"I wonder if that means him and Orion are gonna start a secret alliance, _against _the alliance." Tonia wondered. Kelvin shrugged.

"It's a possibility. But Jase is probably gonna fuck up soon. The guy just can't keep his mouth shut." Thunder rolled her eyes.

"He's about as quiet as a construction site."

"Wow." Trixie said, "Maybe this means the end of the so called 'Fearsome Five'..."

"Wonder how that's gonna play out." Rain said. Deacon shrugged.

"Jason may be a bit of an idiot, but you have to admit. He has his moments." They all nod in agreement.

"Final(ly) clip! Orion and Kylie!"

* * *

_ "Listen, boy. I don't know why, but I'm beginning to think you aren't pond scum like pretty much every other guy."_

_"Thanks, I feel all tingly inside."_

_Kylie rolled her eyes. "Whatever. You're better than Jason, at any rate."_

_Orion sighed. "Hey, I'm not going to defend him or anything, but the guy has his moments."_

_"He really doesn't. He just hurt me so bad, you know? Hard to trust guys now."_

_"I know, Kylie. I know."_

_They lay there for a few minutes before Kylie yawned. "I think I'm going to turn in for the night." As she stood up, she stumbled and fell. Orion tried to catch her but she fell on top of him, and suddenly their faces were inches away from each other's. Kylie blushed._

_A few seconds later, Orion asked, "So, uh, how long you planning on staying there?"_

_Her face a bright shade of red, Kylie quickly got up and raced into her cabin. "Night!" she shouted._

* * *

"Do I see blushing on the face of Kylie?" Kelvin said with a smug look. "Who knew she was actually interested in guys!" Trixie threw her hands in the air.

"Is _anyone _faithful anymore?!" she shouted, exasperated.

"Calm down Trix." Tonia said, "She slipped."

"_After _they bonded over being hurt by loved ones." Deacon pointed out. "She _obviously _planned it. She was tryna get her mack on." Thunder and Tonia face-palmed.

"God you're dense." Thunder said, zooming in on Kylie's feet when she tripped. "How could she plan the way her foot twisted?"

"She's an amazing actress?"

"MOVING ON!" Trixie said, annoyed.

"Now we bring in our next two losers! John and Lauren!"

"Ugh, Lauren?" Kelvin groaned, "And it was so peaceful..." Lauren and John walked in, sitting in the two chairs next to the couch.

"Welcome to the Aftermath!" Rain greeted with a smile.

"Hey, mate!" John said cheerfully, "Long time no see!"

"I shouldn't be here..." Lauren grumbled, pissed.

"So, John, how did it feel to be the second one out?" he answered right away.

"Oh I'm perfectly fine with it! I came to have fun, and I did! Sure, a million big ones would be awesome, but then again, what are the chances of me winnin' anyway? It just pains me that I had to part with me love Maddie so soon." Lauren rolled her eyes.

"Gimme a break. I was betrayed by Jason! _Jason! _Do you know how demeaning it is to have that dimwitted idiot orchestrate your elimination?! I felt like a total idiot!"

"Um, Ms Snooty, you _are _a total idiot." Trixie pointed out. Lauren growled and stood menacingly. Trixie stood also, taking something out of her pocket.

"Hey! Sit your prissy ass down! I have a taser and I'm not afraid to use it!" Lauren sat down slowly, defeated.

"Okay guys," Rain began, "based on the last few episodes, who d'you think is going next?"

"Jada." Decaon said.

"Jada." Thunder agreed, "That guy over there screwed her over." she motioned over to John, who scratched his head awkwardly.

"B-but I had to avenge me mate, y'know? S-sorry..." Kelvin shrugged.

"Eh, what's done is done. I myself think Ren is going next. His attitude is gonna get him in a hell of a lot of trouble."

"Really? Cause I think they might try to vote of Eyrik next." everyone looked at Tonia. "I mean, with the fire between him and Danny, and the effect that Danny has on people, it's possible that he could get them to vote Eyrik out."

"I hope that bitch Bliss leaves next." Lauren said coldly.

"...I dunno who I think is gonna go next. But I honestly hope it's Jade-uh, Jada." John said. Trixie and Rain look at the camera.

"Well, that raps up this aftermath!" Trixie says with a smile.

"Tune in next time!" Rain says, "To Total. Drama-"

"Aftermath!"


	12. They Don't Know That We Know About Them!

Chris stood gleaming on the Dock of Shame. "Last time, on Total Drama Reach for the Stars! Our thirteen remaining contestants competed in space-themed trust exercises, and trust me, there is no trust between these guys! The faced an blindfolded astronaut obstacle course, space food cooking, a zero gravity three-legged race, and sarcastic comments from Noah. Even though Ren and Christy swapped teams, Team StarKid ended up facing a loss, and at the most dramatic elimination ceremony yet, the Fearsome Five crumbled and Lauren ended up on the Shuttle of Failures home. Totally awesome! With today being a day off, what will happen on Total! Drama! Reach for the Stars!"

***Cabins***

Chris stood gleaming with Rosa next to him. "So, how was your little vacation?"

Rosa glared at him. "Do you mean locking me in the Shuttle of Failures so I wouldn't interrupt your competition?"

"Yes. Yes I do."

"Just wake them up!" Rosa exclaimed angrily.

Chris shrugged and blew an incredibly loud air horn. Pulling out a megaphone, he yelled, "5 a.m. wake up call, teensters!"

Amidst the cursing and falling in the cabins, Eyrik stood behind Chris and tapped him on the shoulder, causing him to jump.

"Whoa!" Chris shrieked. "Nice, man. Didn't even see you there!"

Eyrik shrugged as all of the other contestants, some of them half-dressed or wearing clothes backwards, walked out of their cabins. "There better be a damn good reason for this wake-up call," Annalisia grumbled.

"I do in fact have a good reason!" Chris said, gleaming. "Today, you kiddos have a day off!" After most of the excited cheers died down, Chris added, "But there will be some sort of challenge today!"

"What are you talking about?" Jada asked with a groan. "It's our day off!"

"Exactly!" Rosa said with a smile. "So let me explain this challenge for you." She looked around for something, or someone, but apparently didn't find it. "Hmm, wasn't she supposed to be here, Chris?"

"She was here a few seconds ago," Chris replied, puzzled.

As if in response, a tied-up Chef fell to the ground. "AAH!" Troy shrieked. Everyone looked up to see Chris' private helicopter, now pilotless, fly off into the ocean and someone parachuting out of it. A maniacal laugh was heard as the parachutist came descending down.

As they landed, they took off their helmet and a mane of red hair came cascading down. "Oh, hey there guys! Sorry, I was just catching up with my good pal Cheffie McChefChertons the Third! Hehe! Man, this camp sure is just as I remember it! Look, there's the cabins! Man, I had some good times in those cabins. And look! The air is just as I remember it! Oh, good times, good times."

As Orion squealed and fainted, Chris grinned widely. "Everyone, please give a warm welcome to your classic Total Drama competitor of the day – Izzy!"

**Confessions:**

**Troy: I didn't scream like a little girl. Nope. I'm too manly for that. And seriously, what is it with Orion fangirling over every veteran?**

**Izzy: This confessional is just like I remember it! Oh, confessional. Oh, the memories. Oh, this camp.**

Rosa nodded. "Yep. Izzy. She's here today for a very special reason. She's hiding a special secret on her, and one representative from each team must accept the challenge to track her down. The first one to do so will learn the secret and be faced with the decision to either tell the team or not what it is. So teams, huddle together and pick your representative!"

Bliss, Ren, Orion, Troy, Madeline, and Jason huddled. "It should be Maddie," Jason suggested. "She's practically Izzy herself, I mean."

Ren turned to the crazy girl. "You up for this, Madds?"

"I was born for this, mwahahaha!" she said deviously, a grin spread on her face.

Annalisia, Christy, Danny, Eyrik, Jada, and Kylie huddled as well. "Who wants to do this?" Annalisia asked. When no one volunteered, Eyrik nodded his head. "You'll do it?" Mickey asked. When he nodded again, she smiled.

**Confessions:**

**Annalisia: If anyone is going to have a chance of catching Izzy, it's going to be Eyrik!**

"Time's up!" Chris announced into the megaphone as he finished untying Chef. "Team Starkid! Team Extraterrestrial! Who're your representatives?"

Madeleine and Eyrik both stepped forward and met each other's eyes. This would be a fierce competition. Izzy nodded slowly. "Alright, so if you want your secret, you're going to have to -" Without bothering to finish, she took off racing into the forest.

"CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!" Maddie screeched as she raced after her in a hurry. Eyrik quietly and nimbly followed after the two girls, and within seconds, all three of them were gone.

"Um… now what?" Christy asked the two co-hosts.

Chris shrugged. "Do whatever you want. I don't care. McLean, out!" he then disappeared in a puff of purple smoke.

"Man, why is that guy so flashy?" Chef grumbled as he walked back to the mess hall.

Rosa, following him, replied, "That is a question for future historians to debate."

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

Danny and Bliss sat together. "What's up in that noggin of yours, loser?" Bliss asked playfully.

"That's for me to know, and you to find out… maybe," Danny replied with a slight grin.

**Confessions:**

**Danny: The plan was, initially, to carry Bliss until I could take her out… but things might be changing.**

"What's the new strategy now?" Bliss asked. "Musician McGeek and Brawny Bobblehead messed up the plans, big time."

"They sure did," Danny muttered. Louder, he added, "It'll be hard to take out Orion because we know him and Troy are very close. Jason, on the other hand – it'd probably be easy to take him out, but we could also further use him. He was probably just having an episode. If we get him to turn against Orion with us – that'd be big."

As if on cue, Jason walked in. "Um, hey guys, so…"

"Cut the crap, we know you voted against the alliance's wishes," Bliss said hostilely.

Danny stood up with an inviting smile. "Now, Bliss! Calm down. It was just Jason here trying to prove himself, right? Isn't that what happened, Jason?"

"Yes! Definitely. I just wanted to make a big move, you know?" Jason explained, relieved Danny wasn't angry at him. Although on the inside, D.P wanted to rip his head off.

"I understand completely, Jason," Danny replied calmly. "Lauren was someone we'd have to get rid of sooner or later. But listen, Orion betrayed us too. And he definitely wasn't trying to prove himself."

Jason nodded, a bit confused. "Okay…"

"So," Danny went on, "If you wanted to prove to us that you really were loyal to the Fearsome Five, you'd help blindside our musician friend, right?"

Jason quickly turned towards Bliss, who was nodding. She stood up and put her hands on his shoulder. "Oh, Jase! We can't have traitors among our ranks. You understand, don't you?" she asked, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Sure, babe," Jason said with bravado. Turning to Danny, he asked, "What about the Ninja Nerd?"

"Do not tell him, at all," Danny stressed.

"Keep it top-secret," Bliss added.

Jason paled. "Secret?"

**Confessions:**

**Jason: Why do they keep giving me all of these damn secrets to keep?!**

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

Orion sat on one of the bunk beds, strumming his guitar. Troy stood throwing some wooden ninja stars that he'd carved after Chris had confiscated his stuff again. Troy threw one at the door right as Jason opened it. "AAH!" he yelled, ducking. "Watch where you're throwing things, Ninja Nerd!"

As he closed the door, Troy rolled his eyes. "You're obviously just jealous of my mad skills. C'mon, admit it."

Orion laughed. "Where were you, brickhouse? Off in a top-secret conspiracy meeting?"

As the two friends laughed, Jason started sweating and laughed nervously. "A conspiracy meeting?! Haha! That's ridiculous, haha!"

Troy and Orion exchanged glances quickly. "Get the door," Troy commanded. Before Jason could react, Orion was blocking the door. Jason turned back to Troy, who was clutching a star in each hand. And they were sharp.

"So, Jason, where were you?" the ninja asked.

Before Jason could answer, Orion injected, "And we'll know if you're lying, man. You really suck at keeping secrets."

Jason resigned himself. There was no way he was getting out of this one. "Fine! I was with Danny and Bliss. Having a Fearsome Five meeting."

"I know math isn't your strong suit," Orion began sarcastically, "But even you realize that there should be more than three people at a Fearsome _Five_ meeting, right?"

"They made me swear not to tell you guys, but… they want me to help them target Orion because he voted for Lauren. And they made me swear not to tell you," he added, looking at Troy, "Because you guys are close."

Orion and Troy exchanged another glance. "What do you think, Sherlock?" Troy asked.

Orion grinned. "Well… they don't know that we know what they're planning!"

"Exactly!" Troy exclaimed. "So we can instead target them!" Facing Jason with his throwing stars, he added, "Jason. Do not tell Danny or Bliss. Okay?"

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin**

Danny and Bliss stood in front of Jason, who was sitting down on the bunk. "So they're countering our counter?" Bliss questioned.

Jason sighed. "Yes! But they made me promise not to tell you guys!"

Danny grinned. "Oh, but here's the kicker! They don't know that we know that they know!"

"Which means we can counter their counter of our counter!" Bliss exclaimed gleefully.

"Or," Jason suggested, "You guys could all make peace with each other so I won't have any secrets and can go back to knowing nothing!"

Danny and Bliss laughed hysterically. "Or we could just get their loser asses voted off," Bliss replied.

***Team Starkid, Boys' Cabin***

"So let me get this straight," Troy started. "They don't know that we know that they know that we know about them?"

"And they're going to counter our counter of their counter of our counter?" Orion added.

Jason got up and walked out. "This hurts my brain too much!" he exclaimed, and stormed off.

***Forest***

"Here, redheaded Izzy girl…" Maddie said slowly. "Here, Izzy Izzy Izzy Izzy…"

"NO ONE SEES THE WIZARD!" came a shout. Maddie ducked as Izzy came leaping out of the trees and almost collided with her; instead, Izzy went flying into a tree.

"You're a worthy opponent," Izzy said with a crazy grin. "But not worthy enough!" She stuck her fist into the air as Eyrik came leaping out of the tree intending to catch her; instead, Izzy's fist knocked into his crotch, and he fell face-up onto the ground. "Silent Assassin! You can't stop me with your clever tricks!"

Izzy cartwheeled away as Maddie smiled viciously. "You will be mine, demon!"

Eyrik regained his composure and nimbly leapt back up into the trees, hurrying after the others. _I need to get this secret_, he thought to himself.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

Annalisia and Jada lay on their bunks. "I am soooooooooo bored," Jada moaned. "Don't you have something pranky we could use to mess with the others?"

"Well," Mickey began, reaching around in her trunk, "Chris confiscated my water guns and my special surprise concoction. But I do have one little trick up my sleeve…" A few seconds later, she pulled out what she'd been searching for and showed it to Jada, who nodded and smiled.

"Oh, that's wonderful. It'll really do the trick," she said.

The two leapt off of their beds, opened the door, and went off skipping. "We're off to prank the campers," Annalisia began.

"The campers of Wawanakwa!" Jada finished.

***Mess Hall***

Ren sat eating a sandwich that he'd liberated from Chef's kitchen when Kylie and Christy walked in talking.

"So you fell on him?" Christy asked with a giggle. "What'd he do?"

Kylie blushed slightly. "He just made a joke about it. No big deal."

"You so like him, don't you?" Christy teased her friend.

Kylie blushed a little harder. "I do not!"

"Boy, isn't this thrilling conversation," Ren grumbled, rolling his eyes.

**Confessions:**

**Christy: I know I'm just teasing her, but I sure hope Kylie doesn't like Orion! He's dating Brooke!**

**Ren: There's a chance I'm the only one aware that Jason and Orion are in cahoots. But I can't tell anyone. I don't know who to trust, and I especially don't trust the girls after what John told me.**

"You're such a stupid boy," Kylie said vehemently. "Just leave us alone, jerk."

"I was here first!" Ren argued. "And you just walk in here with your gossip and accuse me of being a jerk? Sure, that makes sense."

"G-guys!" Christy said. "Calm down!" Ren glared at her and she meekly backed down, intimidated.

"I just want to enjoy my damn sandwich," Ren growled.

Kylie rolled her eyes. "Then just leave!" Ren retaliated at the comment by throwing the sandwich at her face. Wiping her face off, Kylie smiled grimly. "Oh, boy, you've asked for it." Going into the refrigerator, she pulled out several fruits.

"Don't do anything you're going to regret, now, girly," Ren said hostilely. Kylie proceeded to throw several pieces of fruit at him, covering his face.

Ren stood up and with a devious grin raced to the pantry while Kylie returned to the fridge, pulling Christy with her, and within seconds there was a full-fledged food war going on.

"Eat pickles, jerk!" Kylie yelled.

Ren held a slice of bread in each hand and used them to deflect the pickles before tossing them at the girls. "Stop loafing around," he said, and laughed at his pun. (oh puns...so stupid...so amusing...)

Christy retaliated by hitting him in the face with another pickle. The girls giggled as Ren cursed up a storm, and at that moment Chef Hatchet walked in. Seeing the mess hall completely ruined, he turned towards the three. "MAGGOTS!" he exclaimed loudly, pulling out his big knife.

The campers exchanged quick glances. "Run?" Kylie asked.

"Run," Ren agreed, and the three ran, slid out under Chef's legs, and took off in a hurry.

"AND DO NOT COME BACK!" Chef screeched after them, tossing the knife.

***Forest***

"Here, kitty kitty kitty…" Maddie purred. "Here, kitty…" Out of nowhere, the ground below her collapsed and she fell into a giant hole.

Izzy poked her head out on top. "So nice of you to drop by! Hehe! Falling humor! Oh, the humor."

Eyrik then leapt from a tree, but Izzy caught him in midair and threw him into the hole, where he fell on Maddie. "Oopsies! Looks like you fell down too! And Izzy lives to see another day!"

As Izzy skipped away, Maddie clutched her fist and turned to look at the sky. "Curse you, Izzabelle! CURSE YOU!"

Eyrik shook his head and attempted scaling the hole but failed; there wasn't anywhere to get a good enough grip. Turning to Maddie, he gestured lifting her up.

"Sure thing, General Fluffyworthington!" Maddie replied with a salute. "Lift me up and I'll pull you out!"

Eyrik nodded. He hefted her onto his shoulders and she grasped the top and climbed out. Maddie threw some conveniently placed rope down and helped pull Eyrik out. The two caught their breath for a second and Eyrik meant to go off after Izzy, but Maddie held him back.

"Not so fast, Quiet Wyatt!" she exclaimed. "We work better as a team. Let's work together to catch her and share the secret!"

Eyrik shook his head, against the idea, and leapt up into the trees.

Maddie shrugged. "I enjoy the chase."

***Cabins***

Jason stood pacing outside the cabins. If we went to Bliss and Danny they'd tell him to work against Orion and Troy, but if we went to Orion and Troy they'd tell him to work against Bliss and Danny. Jason's brain was really starting to hurt.

Suddenly, a small metal ball rolled up next to him. "Hmm, what's this?" he asked to himself as he picked it up.

**Confessions:**

**Jason: I mean, it _seemed_ harmless enough…**

Suddenly, the metal ball began to vibrate and thrust out an incredibly bright flash of light that blinded Jason. "AAH!" he screeched, collapsing to the ground.

**Confessions:**

**Jason: It wasn't.**

As Jason writhed around on the floor, unable to see, Mickey and Jada, wearing protective glasses, walked up, laughing quietly. In an uncanny imitation of Chef's voice, Mickey said, "Why hello there, Extremely Attractive Maggot."

Jason shrieked and stood up shakily. He attempted to run away but instead slammed into the side of one of the cabins. Screaming again, he continued running and slamming into random things.

Mickey and Jada high-fived at their pranky-work. "Oh, that was too priceless," Annalisia said, laughing hysterically.

"How can you even _do_ that?" Jada asked, laughing uncontrollably as well.

"Lots and lots of practice," her best friend replied, and together they skipped off.

"We're off to prank the campers," Jada began.

"The campers of Wawanakwa!" Mickey finished.

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

"Man, I just finished a song," Orion said.

Troy grinned. "Let's hear it then!"

"_Jason doesn't have a brain, Danny's tryna end our game, Bliss' insults are kinda lame, my friend Troy has no shame_."

Troy laughed. "Whatever. Man, what are we gonna do? We can't get played by them!"

"Well, technically, it would be them playing us playing them playing us playing them playing us playing them playing us."

"No wonder Jason's brain hurts…"

It was then that Ren walked in, covered in food. "Man, did you lose a fight with a fridge or something?" Orion asked him with a chuckle.

Ren shot him a death glare. "Out. Now." When the musician hesitated, Ren added, "I'd like some time alone with the ninja."

Orion shrugged, smacked Troy across the head, and walked out with his guitar slung over his shoulder, closing the door behind him. Troy looked at Ren. "So, male bonding time? I know you've been dying to know the inner Troy."

Ren growled. "Calm yourself before I punch you, okay? There's something I need to talk with you about. Seriously."

Troy shrugged. "Um, sure. Shoot."

"There's an alliance between you, Orion, and Jason," Ren stated. It wasn't a question. When Troy didn't answer, he continued. "You guys wanted to vote me out." Again, it wasn't a question, and again Troy didn't answer. "Answer me," Ren growled.

And as Troy began to answer, it suddenly hit him. "Ren, are you a big fan of Danny Peterson?"

***Outside the Cabins***

Christy had gone to the showers, leaving Kylie sitting on the stairs covered in food. Orion walked out of his cabin and waved at her, walking over. "Did you and Ren get caught in an explosion or something?"

Kylie laughed. "Nope. Just a really awesome food fight."

"Sounds like fun."

"It was until Chef walked in!"

Orion shivered. "Not Chef!"

"Oh, yes. It was absolutely terrifying. Trust me." Kylie smiled. But Christy's words were nagging at her – was she starting to like Orion?

***Forest***

Maddie was acting as a decoy, hoping to draw Izzy out, while Eyrik hid in the trees, waiting to pounce on her. Suddenly, Jason came running out of nowhere screaming, "CHEF DO NOT TOUCH ME!" He ran into a tree, fell down, got up, and ran off.

Maddie shrugged, unconcerned for his welfare. "Here, Izzy! Maddie's got a super special surprise for you!"

It was then that a cage descended from the trees and covered Madeleine. "Hey! This trickery is just unfair!" yelled the crazy girl with a stomp of her foot.

A smirking Izzy walked out into view. "All's fair in a buck-toothed beaver and a bubbly Shirley Temple!"

"No truer words have ever been spoken," Maddie replied, nodding her head in agreement. "Please, tell me some more!"

"Bubblegum! Kumquats! Goose! Tomato chips!"

With this momentary distraction, Eyrik was able to successfully leap from the tree and lasso her with the rope from earlier. When she tried to run away or worm herself out, Eyrik yanked on it, pulling her to the ground.

Izzy sighed in defeat. "Argh! You guys caught me! Whatever. It's secret time!"

Maddie and Eyrik both looked at each other in anticipation. What was this secret?

Izzy smiled. "Hidden, somewhere on the island, is a McLean Brand Immunity Head!"

"No way!" Madeleine gasped in shock. Turning to Eyrik, the enigma had been caught off-guard and had a similar shock-based expression on his face. _This is game-changing news_, he thought to himself.

**Confessions:**

**Madeleine: Well, with that big move voting off Jeremiah, you never know for sure who's going to be voted out! Having that Immunity Head would be so awesome!**

"Yup! Well, bye guys. Time to go visit my friends the beavers!" Izzy exclaimed, gnawing her way out of the lasso and disappearing in a smoke bomb.

Madeleine extended her hand and Eyrik slowly high-fived her. "Awesome! This is totally cool, Eyrik!"

Eyrik nodded and made a gesture, pointing between the two of them.

"Are you suggesting that we… work together?" Maddie asked. When Eyrik nodded, she grinned. "Consider it an alliance, bucko!"

***Cliff***

"Where are you, Chef?!" Jason shrieked as he ran off of the cliff and tumbling into the shark-infested waters below. Finally regaining his eyesight, he sighed in relief until he realized that he was freefalling to certain doom.

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

"So, Ren, there was an alliance formed. But not with three people. With five," Troy began to explain.

"Danny and Bliss," Ren growled.

"Those are the ones. And yes, you were the target. But Jason and Orion, for whatever reasons, dissented. And now Danny and Bliss are trying to get Jason to help them vote out Orion, while Orion and I are trying to get Jason on our side. However, you could be our ace in the hole."

"You expect that of me after you tried to vote me out?" Ren growled. "And how can I believe a word you're saying anyways?"

Troy threw his hands up in the air. "Hey, you've been in the bottom what, like twice in a row? To me, that should be an indicator that someone is trying to take you out. An alliance of five might seem like prime suspects."

Ren stayed still for a few seconds before nodding. "Fine, I'll help you. Just to take out Danny and Bliss, and then we're through. Got it?"

Troy grinned gleefully. "Awesome!"

"Now, how exactly are we going to accomplish it?"

"Well… um… I don't make the plans!"

"Oh," Ren said.

"No, you don't understand," Troy added, trying to explain, "I'm Watson!"

"Okay…"

**Confessions:**

**Troy: Having Ren on our side is a total plus! There's so much duplicity though. Bliss and Danny will expect me to still side with them because I can't tell them I know about them trying to take out Orion, and then we've always had our secret Bro Alliance, and we're trying to work with Jason, and now we have Ren as an ally… this is so hard to understand!**

**Ren: I'm going to be able to make a trade before the next challenge, so I expect that to be useful. I'm still uncertain about working with Troy and Orion though. I've got to do what benefits me the best.**

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

Bliss sighed. "Ugh! You and your stupid Fearsome Five alliance! Now we've both got targets on our back. And more importantly, I've got a target on my back!" When Danny didn't respond, she groaned. "Come on! You must have a plan!"

Danny grimaced. "I'm all alone on this team, least you forget. At least you have that walking mannequin Jason to work with. If our dissenters manage to turn everyone against us, it'd just be casualtous."

"Which is why we need you to come up with a plan! Preferably, pronto," Bliss added sassily with hands on her hips.

D.P. chuckled. "Calm yourself, okay? I'm here to play smart, and that's what I'm going to do. I promised you an alliance, and I intend to stick to that. One way or another, we're going to be the final two."

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Final two? That's thinking pretty far ahead. But that's why I keep him around. He does all the thinking and I just sit back and relax!**

"You better stick to that promise, Daniel, or there'll be hell to pay."

***Cabins***

"Here ye, here ye!" Maddie proclaimed loudly as she and Eyrik arrived back. Orion and Kylie had already been sitting outside; Troy and Ren walked out of their cabin, as did Danny and Bliss. Jason came up from the beach and Christy returned from her shower. Annalisia and Jada were nowhere to be seen.

"So which one of you caught Izzy?" Danny asked suspiciously.

Maddie beamed at the enigma.

**Confessions:**

**Maddie: Woohoo! An alliance! Me and Eyrik should be able to do some heavy damage. Don't be jealous now, Johnny boy!**

"We teamed up," Maddie explained. "We both worked together to catch Izzy and get her secret."

"Which is?" Christy asked suspensefully.

Maddie and Eyrik exchanged a quick glance. They had to tell them something so nobody would go looking for the McLean Brand Immunity Head! "Izzy said… Izzy… well, Izzy said…" Madeleine mumbled.

"Get on with it, Madds," Ren grumbled.

"Oh! Yep. That this season, the winner would be picked by a jury!"

Danny eyed her suspiciously. "Is this the truth, Eyrik? Is that what Izzy told you guys?"

Eyrik shrugged. "That's good enough for me!" Troy exclaimed cheerfully. He strutted over to Christy and playfully draped his arm around her. "Now, babydoll, imagine: me in the final two, you on the jury, placing a vote for the seductive male model ninja that you've fallen madly in love with…"

As everyone laughed and someone, oh who could it have been, called Troy a jackass, a small metal ball rolled into sight. "Hey, what's that?" Christy asked as Jason shrieked, lunging for it so he could throw it far away, but before he could reach it the ball vibrated and the bright flash of light shot out blinding them all.

Mickey and Jada popped out from behind one of the cabins grinning. "Perfect!" Jada whispered at the ten figures lying, blinded, on the ground, unsure what to make of what had happened to them.

One of the figures, Eyrik, rose; apparently unfazed by the flash, he shook his head playfully and retreated into the forest. "You really can never prank that guy," Jada commented. Mickey nodded in agreement and prepared her voice.

"Attention, maggots!" she yelled in her Chef Hatchet imitation. "You are all going to pay for what you've done! Especially you, Extremely Attractive Maggot!"

Terrified, Jason, Orion, Christy, Kylie, and Ren rose to their feet and tried to run away but ended up only knocking into each other in pain. "This could qualify as sexual harassment!" Jason yelled loudly as he tried to run away but instead ended up tripping over Bliss' body and falling down face-first.

"My guitar!" Orion shrieked as he tumbled backwards and collapsed upon it; blindly feeling it, he could tell that it was ruined beyond repair. "Curse you, Chef Hatchet! Curses!"

Troy stood up shaking his head and, in a perfect imitation of Chris' voice, said, "And that folks concludes another thrilling and dramatic episode of Total Drama Reach for the Stars! Next time -now that Orion's guitar is broken- whoever will annoy his very handsome and seductive bunkmate Troy? Who will end up on the jury? Will Chef Hatchet molest Jason in his sleep? And will the girls finally lose all control of their emotions and surrender their bodies to the beauty that is Troy? Tune in next time to find out!"

Jada and Annalisia shook their heads and threw rocks at Troy until he fell to the ground. Still using Chris' voice, he shrieked, "Not the hair! Not the hair!"

**Confessions:**

**Annalisia: Oh, that Troy! Always such an egotist! His mimicking skills are impressive, though, I'll give him that.**

**Christy: Well that certainly was an entertaining way to spend a day off!**

**Danny: Color me suspicious, but something doesn't feel right about what Maddie and Eyrik told us about the jury. It's very possible that they're hiding something from us, and boy do I intend to find out what it is!**

**Kylie: Alright, I mean, I can't like Orion! He's dating Brooke and all. I'm not going to turn into one of those girls!**

**Izzy: I'm never leaving Camp Wawanakwa! You'll never take me alive!**

***Chris' Video Tent***

Watching the monitors, Chris grinned. "Well that wraps this episode up! With the Fearsome Five alliance apparently self-destructing and several new alliances taking its place, will Jason be able to find his way pack into a position of power and safety? Will Ren decide to make a trade? Will Chef ever stop calling Jason extremely attractive? Will Orion ever stop fangirling over veteran contestants? And the million dollar question, everyone – where _is_ Brooke? Trust me, you'll have to tune in to find out – and even then you won't believe it!"

Izzy casually wandered into the video tent. "Oh, hey there, Luther!"

"Izzy? Weren't you supposed to board the Shuttle of Failures and get as far away from me as humanly possible?" Chris asked in shock.

"No, silly! I'm never leaving! Mwahaha! By the way, the island smells vaguely of Noah," Izzy said passively. "I can almost hear the pitter-patter of his little feet!"

Chris grinned deviously. "You guys so had a thing, didn't you?"

Chef Hatchet then snuck up on the scene and captured Izzy in a cage. "Ha! I got you now, girl! Now you will leave my island once and for all! Victory for Hatchet!"

Shaking her head in response, Izzy threw another smoke bomb and disappeared. Chef shook his head. "Oh, hell no! I am not hunting her down!"

Rosa walked in next. "Well, everyone, that's about it for now! Tune in next time on Total Drama -"

"Reach for the Stars!" Troy interrupted on one of the video screens.

"TROY!"

* * *

**Well, that wraps it all up for this first day-off. I tried to pack as much drama and awesomeness into one chapter as I possibly could, and this is the result. I hope you all enjoy it! And every question proposed by Chris at the end – except for the one about Chef and Jason – will be revealed in the next two chapters, so stay tuned to find out!**

**In terms of other veterans, which one would you all rather see: Harold or Justin? Your opinion counts!**

**Is it me, or are these chapters getting longer and longer? O.o**


	13. A Very Obscure Oval

Chris stood gleaming on the Dock of Shame. "Last time, on Total Drama Reach for the Stars! With our twelve remaining contestants' first day off, things got heated, and heated fast! The Fearsome Five alliance crumbled when Danny and Bliss conspired against former ally Orion, with Jason ending up in the middle. Veteran contestant Izzy arrived on the island carrying shocking news – there's a McLean Brand Immunity Head hidden somewhere on the island! Madeleine and Eyrik decided to lie to their teams about this, however, and formed a secret alliance to find it. Meanwhile, Annalisia and Jada went on a pranking rampage while Ren, Christy, and Kylie got into a very heated food fight. So what will happen this time on Total! Drama! Reach for the Stars!"

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

Orion, Troy, Ren, and Jason sat together in a group huddle. "Lay it on is, Sherlock," Troy said with a grin.

**Confessions:**

**Ren: I agreed to help these guys, but I still don't trust them. After the Lauren blindside, I've got to always watch my back.**

**Jason: I still don't know what side to play! I'm like a double agent for now, I guess.**

Orion nodded. "Ren, you've got the trade, right?"

"And now I see why they call you Sherlock," Ren growled with a roll of his eyes.

"If we want to take out Danny, or Bliss… Danny's the bigger target. So we should trade Bliss for Danny."

Jason shook his head. "Idiot. If we want to get rid of them both, why get Bliss off of the team?"

"Because if we have Danny and Bliss together, that leaves us open to variables," Orion explained. "It's better to keep Danny alienated."

***Mess Hall***

Danny and Bliss sat together in silence. Bliss tried to break the awkwardness. "What do you think is going to happen?"

Danny shrugged. "Well… honestly? I don't know. But if we're going to do anything, we're going to need allies."

"Yeah, good luck with that," Bliss scoffed. "There isn't exactly a long line waiting to team up with us, doofus." At that moment Christy walked in and Danny grinned mischievously.

"It may be a short line, but it's all we've got," Danny muttered. He called over to Christy. "Hey, Christy! Why don't you come sit with us?"

Christy looked around nervously, unsure if he was really talking to her. Danny beckoned her again and she came and sat down. "Um… what's up?"

Bliss rolled her eyes while Danny smiled at her. "Christy, I don't know if you've considered this game up to this point."

"What do you mean?" Christy asked, shifting slightly.

"Well," Danny explained, "We've seen some pretty strong competitors go. It took a real coo to get rid of Jeremiah, that's for sure. We're on the same team and everything, so I was just offering the services of myself and my ally, Bliss."

A shocked Christy turned to Bliss who smiled very fake and large. "Yep! Danny and I are just so lost! We could use someone to help us out!"

Danny nodded. "Yep. So, what do you say? Unless you're working with someone else, I mean."

**Confessions:**

**Christy: I am in somewhat of an alliance with Madeleine, but it would be nice to work with some other people. I've survived for a while so I might as well try to win!**

**Danny: So not only might I be gaining a new ally in Christy, I'll also be fishing up whatever alliances might be going on with the floaters.**

Christy smiled timidly. "Um, sure, I guess so."

"Now all we need is a terrible name," Bliss muttered under her breath.

Christy heard her, however, and thinking that she was serious, quickly exclaimed, "The Underdogs!"

As Bliss facepalmed, Danny nodded. "Sure, the Underdogs. That's us!"

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: I mean, I put up with the Fearsome Five, but the Underdogs? Are these losers _trying_ to kill me? Seriously, who writes this stuff!?**

***Woods***

Sweating, Madeleine rested against a tree. Wiping sweat from her brow, she asked to the trees, "Any luck, He-Who-Is-Silent?"

Without so much as rustling branches, Eyrik appeared from the trees and shook his head. _No_.

**Confessions:**

**Madeleine: So hey! Me and Eyrik woke up and went searching for the Immunity Head, yep! No luck yet, though. Oopsies!**

Maddie shrugged. "Oh shucks Barnacle Boy! We'll have to keep looking for that then!" Eyrik nodded and was about to retreat into the trees when a sudden giggle was heard from around them. The two locked eyes and went to where they'd heard the sound, finding an arrow drawn into the ground and a lock of red hair in the point.

Maddie grinned at Eyrik. "Looks like the Covert Affair has a secret helper!"

**Confessions:**

**Eyrik: *shrugs at alliance name***

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

Annalisia woke up with a yawn and a stretch. "Rise and shine, girlies!" she sang.

Aggravated, Jada growled and threw a pillow at her friend's head. "Let me have my sleep bitch," Jada groaned.

Kylie laughed and got out of bed. "C'mon, girls! It's time to get out there and win us another challenge!"

"That's the spirit, Kylie!" Annalisia said with a grin, high fiving her teammate.

Jada groaned again. "Unless the challenge is sleeping, please don't wake me. And even if it is… don't wake me. I'll want to pull off a win really bad."

The other girls laughed. "It's nice," Annalisia commented, "Just having friends here. No Lauren or Bliss to share a cabin with. It's wonderful!"

Kylie shook her head. "No!"

"What's wrong?"

"You just jinxed it!" Kylie cried. "Just you watch. If Bliss ends up in this cabin, it'll be all your fault!" the two girls laughed as Jada threw another pillow at them and retreated under the covers.

***Cabins***

"Kiddos!" Chris exclaimed into his megaphone. Rosa stood next to him, shaking her head with protective headphones on to block out the sound. "Everyone, arrive out here at this very moment!"

Everyone trudged out of their cabins and/or mess hall and/or forest to see Chris and Rosa standing there. Next to them were two tables with items covered in sheets and one very tall item covered in a sheet as well. "Welcome, everyone," Rosa said with a smile. "Welcome to your challenge today!"

Chris rolled his eyes. "Where's the pizzazz! Rosa, say it with some _pizzazz_."

"WELCOME TO YOUR CHALLENGE TODAY!"

"Pizzazz doesn't mean loud, for future reference," Chris replied, glaring at Rosa, who smiled sheepishly. "Your challenge comes in two parts today, kiddos ad kidd-ps! Hehe…" When nobody laughed at his pun, he continued. "But before we explain that, there's a decision we have to make! Mister Angry Ren, please step forward!"

**Confessions:**

**Ren: Big decision to make. Do I go with that plan, or stick to my own? I hate people telling me what to do.**

As Ren stepped forward, he locked eyes with Annalisia. Things had been awkward between them ever since their fight. He intended to fix that. "What, McLean?" he growled.

"Time to make a trade," Chris said, deviously rubbing his hands together. "Since you were in the bottom two for the last elimination ceremony, you -"

"Must decide whether or not you'd like to trade someone on your team for someone on the other team," Troy interjected. Smiling widely at Ren, he asked, "So, what's your decision?"

Ren clenched his fist and said, "Bliss for Danny."

Silence fell over the contestants. "Um… could you repeat that please, Ren?" Rosa asked, surprised.

"Bliss. For. Danny. Want me to write it down for you?" Ren said cockily.

Bliss and Danny locked eyes as they moved to join their new teams. "_Stick with Christy, aim high_," he whispered secretively to her. She nodded and walked up to the shy girl who nervously smiled at the queen bee.

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: No. No. No. I refuse. Being nice is so hard. Being nice while being called an Underdog is just impossible.**

**Christy: We're the Underdogs because last time, none of us made the merge! Get it? *laughs awkwardly***

Danny joined Orion, Ren, Troy, Jason, and Madeleine at Team StarKid. "Not so fearsome with these five, are you?" Troy asked jokingly.

**Confessions:**

**Danny: Let Orion and Troy do whatever they want to. Fine. They're going down. I don't understand Ren's motives, though. We were allies previously and he dislikes Bliss, so maybe it's as simple as that, but something tells me that there's more to it than that. Jason is a wildcard, but when it comes to where it matters, he's my pawn. And as for Madeleine, I _should_ be able to manipulate her well, but I'm not sure. With Bliss and Christy acting as my proxies on Team Extraterrestrial as well, I feel like I'm in a pretty good position… I should just move in here or something…**

"Awesome! Now that these teams are rearranged," Chris began, "Let me explain the first portion of your challenge! As you may have noticed, arranged on these two tables are six items each hidden under sheets. There's an item for each of you! One at a time, we'll call you up and you'll only be able to look at the sheet. No peeksies! The item is supposed to be something that you'll really either want or need. But there's a catch. Each item might be a bust. By bust we mean a penalty item. If you choose to take your item, you will be ineligible to compete in the next portion of the challenge. Understand, tweensters?"

Everyone nodded. "This challenge is going to be so easy to win," Jada commented, rubbing her hands in excitement.

"Or lose," Orion commented vaguely. Madeleine looked at him, confused.

"So, to start this challenge," Rosa started with a smile, "Christy! Do me a favor and unsheathe this tall sheet here! Don't worry, it's not your item."

Christy nervously shrugged and walked over to the tall item. Pulling the sheet off carefully, a sudden karate chop appeared and chopped her on the head, causing her to fall and sprawl out on the ground. Someone jumped out from under the sheet, whipped out some nunchucks, and swung them around until accidentally hitting themselves in the crotch. "Oh, my kiwis!"

As they lay groaning on the floor, Chris grinned. "And this, everyone, is your classic Total Drama competitor – Harold! Let's give him a round of applause!"

During the clapping, Troy noticed Orion with a bored expression on his face. "What, no swooning this time?" Troy joked.

"Nope. Not much of a Harold fan," Ori replied.

"Gosh!" Harold exclaimed as he rose to his feet. "Final five in Total Drama Action means nothing!"

"Try winning," Orion muttered, causing Troy to snicker. The two bros bumped fists.

As Christy rose to her feet and rejoined her team, Chris began the challenge. "Alright, Harold! Take it away!" He and Rosa walked over to the mess hall, leaving Harold in charge.

Harold adjusted his glasses and walked over to the Team Extraterrestrial table. "Alright, let's get this started! First up is, uh… Annalisia!"

Before Annalisia was even told what item was for hers, she shook her head. "Sorry, Napoleon Dynamite, but I'm winning this challenge! No item for me."

"Well then," Harold replied sassily. "Next up is Christy! Oh, sorry for chopping you on the head, by the way."

"It happens," Christy commented dejectedly, rubbing her head. Harold presented her with a box-shaped item underneath the sheet. "Hmm… I'm tempted… I'll take it!" Harold whipped off the sheet and it was a wooden box with lock and a note on top. "It says 'You may not break this box open'… oh well," Christy read.

"Shake it!" Kylie suggested. "Maybe that'll help figure out what's inside," she explained to her teammates. Christy shook it and there was something inside, but unable to open up the lock without a key, she shrugged and gave up.

"Next up is Eyrik!" came Harold's distinctive voice. Holding up the sheet, it was an obscure shape that looked like several tubes. Eyrik momentarily thought about it before slightly shaking his head no.

Harold shrugged. "Alright, fine. And Jada is the next one up!" Harold pulled up a small sheet with what looked like a small sphere. "Make your decision, m'lady."

Jada went to conference with Annalisia. "What do you think it could be?" she asked.

"Hmm…" Mickey pondered. "It's really small, so it's probably just a bust. But why make a bust so obvious?"

"That's exactly what I was thinking!" Jada exclaimed. "An obvious bust isn't good. But if I take it, what if that messes us up for the challenge?"

"Go for it! I'll win the challenge by myself if I have to," Mickey added with a grin.

Jada smiled and turned to Harold. "I'll take it!" Harold nodded and threw her… a ping pong ball.

"Oh, tough bust!" Harold exclaimed as Jada retreated into her own emo corner of shame. "Next up is Kylie!"

In Harold's hand was a bulky and rectangular contraption. Kylie considered what it could be.

**Confessions:**

**Kylie: It kinda looks like it could be a camera! Depending on what's on the memory card, it _could _be pretty useful, but…**

"It's too much of a risk," Kylie replied. "Sorry, but I'll pass."

"And that leaves, last but not least," Harold began.

"Definitely least," Troy muttered. Orion smacked him across the head and called him a jackass.

"It's Bliss!" Harold finished as she strutted over. Bliss turned over to see Danny subtly nodding his head, something Eyrik also caught note of.

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Danny wants me to take the item so he stands a better chance of winning. But hey, I want to win too! Sorry Doofus Peterson, I'm number one.**

Harold held out a sheet with a distinctive shape – high up in the back but lower in the front. Bliss could identify that shape anywhere. Shoes. Looking down at her own heels, which were now dirty, stained, and not so attractive. "Give me the shoes," she grumbled while a smirking Danny looked on. Yanking off the shoes were some very bright and beautiful scarlet heels. "My babies," Bliss cooed as she cuddled them.

"I'm actually thinking about getting a pair of those for my darling baby LeShawna," Harold commented. "Her feet look ever so luscious in the appropriately leveled heels!"

While everyone rolled their eyes, Orion snickered. "Didn't you guys, um… break-up? Isn't that what happened, string bean?"

Harold fumed. "Gosh! Idiots! Let's present your item, Mister O-Ri-On!"

**Confessions:**

**Orion: This challenge is kinda simple. If we lose, D.P. gets voted out. So I'm thinking, what could be so bad about losing this challenge?**

Harold held out a sheet and everyone gasped. The shape was obvious. It was a guitar case. Orion locked eyes with Troy who grinned and gave him a thumbs-up. "I'll take it!" the musician exclaimed giddily. Harold tossed it over to him and it was, indeed, a guitar case. Everyone watched on as he opened it up to find…

A note with a coupon of Chef's face attached to it.

"And that is what we refer to as a bust," Harold jested, laughing at his own humor.

"What's the note say?" Annalisia called over.

Orion began to read. "_Dear darling Orion, hey man! I totally tricked you! You thought you were getting a new guitar when instead you get this ratty old guitar case, this note, and a coupon. In case you're wondering, it's a coupon for quality time with Chef to be redeemed before the next elimination ceremony or else you're eliminated! Man, this really sucks, right? Love, Chris McLean. P.S. – Don't say that curse you're about to say._"

"God damn my goddamned damn life, goddamn," Orion grumbled as he dejectedly walked to the kitchen to redeem his coupon. "If I don't come back, do _not_ eat the meat he feeds you!"

"Next up is… Angry Ren? That's kind of a really awkward name. Is it hyphenated or something?" Harold asked, reading off of a list.

Ren rolled his eyes. "What do you have for me, nerd?" The sheet Harold held up concealed a sheet with an unorthodox shape. Without even considering what it could be, Ren muttered, "I'll take it."

"Angry Ren – can I call you A.R.? A.R. just won himself a bouquet of roses!" Harold called out. "Maybe you've got a special someone that needs some special lovin'!"

As everyone groaned, Ren took the roses and slowly walked up to Annalisia. "Um, hey. Things have been awkward, and, here… I got these for you." He presented her with the roses.

She softly smiled. "Grow them yourself?" she joked.

"Ha," Ren said with a chuckle. "Listen, can we go talk?"

"After I win this challenge," she replied, kissing him softly on the lips. Ren smiled happily and locked hands with her. Jada gushed silently from behind.

**Confessions:**

**Jada: Aw! That's so adorable! Mickey and Ren are so happy together! Me and Rain are even happier together – oh wait, he's not here! My bad, all the PDA had me feeling there was enough kissing around for everyone.**

"And next up is good ol' Madeleine!" Harold announced.

"Goody, goody!" she exclaimed.

**Confessions:**

**Madeleine: Covert Affair time! This item could be something that'll help me find the Immunity Head, yep! I need to do this for Eyrik and me!**

Harold held up a sheet which was completely flat, implying that it was just a sheet of paper. "Take it or leave it," he called out.

"I'll _take itttttttttttttt_," Maddie sung loudly. Cartwheeling over, she took the sheet from Harold's hands, kicked him in the face, and backflipped back to her team. Pulling out what was indeed a sheet of paper, she discovered that it was a map!

"What'd you get, Maddie?" Troy asked eagerly.

Madeleine whistled innocently. "Oh, just a board game without pieces, you know what it is, the same old, _same old_, the bustiest bust of all the busty items!" she faked a pout.

Troy looked away nervously. "Okay…"

"And next up," Harold began, rubbing his sore face and fixing his glasses, "Jason!"

Jason walked up with bravado as Harold held up a sheet covering what appeared to be a crate of some sort. "Crates have food," Jason rationed out loud, "And man, I like me some food. I'll take the crate, nerdy guy!"

**Confessions:**

**Jason: How was I supposed to know that crates don't always have food…**

Harold nodded and pulled off the sheet. It wasn't a crate – it was a carrying case for pets. And the door was open. And there was a cat inside.

And Jason was scared of cats.

"HELL NO!" he exclaimed loudly. Startled by the loud volumes of his voice, the cat yelped and leapt out of the case, jumping onto Jason's face and clawing his cheeks. "Help me, losers!" he screeched.

Danny and Troy turned to each other. "I really want to help him, but he might be in cahoots with you," Troy said, laughing.

"He might be working with you, Troy. So no chance am I aiding him," Danny agreed. They both watched Jason run off, trying – and failing – to pry the cat off of his face.

Harold sighed, content. "I sure do love a good catfight! But now, let's move on. Danny, AKA the Normal One -"

"I decline," Danny interrupted. Like Mickey, he rejected without even seeing his sheeted item. "There needs to be at least one person moving on to the next portion," he added, casting a stare Troy's way.

Harold shrugged. "That leaves Troy!"

A grinning Troy sauntered over. "Give me some sugar, daddy!"

Harold gestured to the table all of the items had been resting upon, which was also sheeted. "Here's your choice."

**Confessions:**

**Troy: A table? Really? What kind of idiot would choose to take a table?**

"I'll take the table!" Troy exclaimed, and Danny face palmed.

**Confessions:**

**Danny: So I'm the only one left standing on my team. It's time for me to either win the challenge or join the jury.**

Harold whooshed off the sheet and underneath was a ping pong table. "Aw, what good is a ping pong table without a ball?" Troy whined.

"It just so happens that I have a ball," Jada replied. "Maybe my bust wasn't so bad after all."

Troy grinned. "Look at it now," he began, putting his arm around Christy flirtatiously, "You. Me. Pinging some pong. You doing some pinging. Me doing some ponging. Then reversing the roles. Sounds real romantic, doesn't it?"

Christy blushed furiously. "Um… uh… I guess… I don't know…"

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: All of this loser love makes me sick, ugh! Just one attractive, non-loser is what I'm asking for. _I__s that too much_?**

"Alright, kiddies!" Chris exclaimed as he returned, followed by Rosa, who looked incredibly irritated.

**Flashback: Mess Hall**

"Have any 8's?" Rosa asked.

"Nope, go fish," Chris answered.

Rosa glared at him. "Chris, you have 50 cards in your hand. You obviously have an 8."

"Not even!" Chris whined.

**Present: Outside the Cabins**

"Who survived? Team StarKid, stand to my right! Team Extraterrestrial, stand to my left!" Chris commanded. Danny stood alone on the right while Annalisia, Kylie, and Eyrik stood together on Chris' left.

"That's it?" Rosa asked, surprised. "I would've expected more. Like where's Jason? Or Orion?"

"Jason's having a pretty good catfight," Harold said dreamily, reminiscing about the experience.

Chris grinned evilly. "And I've got quite the surprise for Orion. But as for you four who survived – follow me to the Zero Gravity Chamber!"

***Mess Hall***

A depressed Orion walked in to the mess hall. "Um… yeah. Chef? Sergeant Hatchet? I have something for you… unfortunately…"

Chef angrily popped out from the kitchen. "Musical maggot? What are _you_ doing in _my_ mess hall?" Orion flashed him the coupon. "Oh. Well, I was just…"

Orion peeped his head around the corner and saw a TV with Wizards of Waverly Place on with two reclining chairs and a bowl of chips. "Wizards of Waverly Place?"

Chef gave him a death glare. "You got a PROBLEM with them wizards?"

"Um, nope. Actually, I love Wizards of Waverly Place."

The two mortal enemies just stood awkwardly. "So, uh… wanna watch? There's two chairs. I mean, you don't have to, maggot."

"Um, no, sure. I'll watch. Awesome."

**Confessions:**

**Chef Hatchet: Me and the maggot might be enemies forever, but whenever Wizards of Waverly Place is on, all must watch. You hear me, viewers? ALL! MUST! WATCH!**

***Forest***

Jason, with scars and war paint on his face, and a bandana tied around his forehead, cautiously peered his head out from behind a tree. "Here, kitty, kitty, kitty… Here, kitty, kitty, kitty…"

Hearing a branch snap, he abruptly turned around and there was the cat sitting calmly before him. She was a pure white cat with orange eyes and she was staring intently at the brickhouse. Jason tried slowly stepping backwards away from the cat, but accidentally stepped on a branch.

"Oh my god," he muttered before turning around in a full sprint. Jason tripped and fell to the ground; he turned onto his back just in time to get a face full of cat claw.

"NO!" Jason shrieked to the heavens.

***Elsewhere in the Forest***

Map in hand, Maddie snaked around the forest. Unfortunately, she had was holding the map horizontally instead of vertically, and reversed. "Where in the good graces am I going?" Madeleine asked, upset.

"Beats me," came a voice. She turned around, surprised to see Ren leaning against a tree. "You basically just went in a very obscure oval. Good job, Mads."

"Oh, um, I was just…"

"Playing your board game?" Ren asked suspiciously. "Sure, because that makes sense. Why don't you tell me what's _really_ going on?"

Madeleine briefly considered it before yelling, "NO ONE SEES THE WIZARD!" and scurrying off.

Ren just stood for a few seconds before shaking his head. "Oh, Mads."

***Outside the cabins***

Bliss and Christy were standing off to the side, watching a heated game of ping pong going on between Troy and Jada. "It's like they're moving at the speed of light," Christy commented as Troy jumped into the air to spike the ball.

Bliss shrugged. "Sure. I guess. Is that like fast or something?"

The two players were clashing harshly. "Victory will be mine, sugarplums," Troy said in a singsong voice.

"Ninja Nerd, I am obviously the superior pinger. Sorry to burst your window of transparency," Jada replied sarcastically.

**Confessions:**

**Jada: Drake and Josh reference! Too good to pass up!**

"What makes you think you can beat a ninja?" Troy asked, his ego in full flare.

"Because I'm awesome. Sorry to be such a Debbie Downer," Jada fired back. Now Bliss and Christy were following the insults as intently as the match.

"And I'm sorry that I have to rain on your parade!" Troy exclaimed with a passionate pong. "Oh wait, weren't _you_ the one that rained on Rain's parade?"

That personal insult caught Jada off-guard and the ball went swooshing past her face. She flung her paddle at troy's face, which he easily dodged. "That was just too far, Troy," she muttered, and then sulked off.

Troy whistled as if he'd done nothing wrong and then put one arm around Bliss and one arm around Christy. "So, which one of you wants to take a ping pong champion down to the beach?"

In response, Bliss kicked him in the crotch. As Troy writhed on the ground, Bliss extended a fake smile to Christy and the two girls linked arms. "Let's go leave this loser to himself, okay Christy?"

Christy didn't want to be rude to Troy but at the same time wanted to fit in with Bliss. "Sure thing, Bliss. I mean, um, yeah."

Troy watched on in shock as Bliss led Christy away.

**Confessions:**

**Troy: And another one bites the dust…**

***Zero Gravity Chamber***

Chris, Rosa, and Harold watched as Annalisia, Danny, Eyrik, and Kylie sat on top of a very high set of monkey bars. "You guys ready for this challenge?" Rosa asked perkily.

"Of course they are!" Chris exclaimed without waiting for an answer. "Here's how this is going to work: When we start the challenge, you drop down and grasp your monkey bar. If you let go with both hands, you're out! You might think it's that simple, but it's not! Every once in a while, we're going to increase the gravity dragging you downwards. The last person remaining on their monkey bar wins! Ready to start?"

"Sure!" Danny exclaimed cheerfully. His perkiness covered both his irritation and slight fear – irritation at all of his teammates for abandoning him and fear that he wouldn't be able to pull off a win. He may have convinced himself that he had power, but one wrong move and it was all gone.

"Let's start this!" Kylie yelled out once they were all in position. And then Chris increased the gravity and she came plummeting to the uncushioned ground. "Ow…"

"How you holding up, Eyrik?" Annalisia asked her only teammate still competing with her. He nodded. He was rock solid.

Danny, however, was struggling. He was starting to sweat and he was losing his grip on the bar. Suddenly, one hand slipped off.

"Yes!" Annalisia exclaimed in excitement, but she was so excited she ended up losing her grip on the bar and fell crushingly to the ground. Despite the pull of the gravity and the annoying sounds of Chris eating popcorn, Danny slowly managed to bring his drooping hand back up to the bar and find a grip. It was now him versus Eyrik.

"Best friends til the end," Danny commented, gritting his teeth. Eyrik glared at him briefly as the gravity began to increase again. After about ninety seconds, it increased again.

Danny was having an excruciating time, using up all of his upper body strength, while Eyrik still appeared calm and enigmatic, not displaying any difficultly. But when the gravity increased for a fourth time, they fell. Everyone watched anxiously as Eyrik came tumbling to the ground first, immediately followed by Danny. Against all odds, Danny had managed to pull out a win, and that was his last thought before he tumbled to the ground, hitting his head hard and getting a massive concussion, falling unconscious.

Rosa turned off the extra gravity and Chris stood up in utter shock. "And Team StarKid wins! Congratulations, Danny!"

"Ahdfiodglgds!" Danny called out before falling back into unconsciousness.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

Since Eyrik was the only boy on the team, it just made sense for him to join the five girls in their cabin. As he walked in, Annalisia and Jada were in the middle of another heated argument with Bliss while Christy and Kylie attempted to stay out of the confrontation.

"Get over yourself!" Annalisia shrieked. "Nobody wants you on this team! You're a menace! A nuisance! And just a bitch!"

"I'm horribly offended by these comments," Bliss replied in a fake Southern belle accent.

"And I'm horribly offended by everything you do!" Jada retorted.

"Maybe you should lay off of Bliss a little bit," Christy murmured.

Annalisia and Jada met each other's eyes before exploding in laughter. "Are you serious?" Annalisia asked in disbelief. "You've turned Christy against us?"

Kylie awkwardly stepped forward. "You guys are exploding on Bliss at every team meeting… but Bliss hasn't really done anything to deserve it. Not this season. I mean sure, I hate her guts and she's horrible, but I mean…"

"No! Just no!" Jada exclaimed, stomping her foot in anger. "How is this even possible!"

And as the arguing continued, Eyrik furrowed his brow in frustration until finally he couldn't take it any longer. "Quiet," he said, quietly but firmly.

And everyone stopped speaking. It wasn't the strength of his voice, but it was the impact of him actually speaking that caught everyone's attention. Everyone calmed down. "I'm sorry," Annalisia muttered to Bliss.

"Me too," Jada grumbled.

Christy smiled. "See? Isn't it much better when we all come together?"

"Yeah, marvelous," Jada retorted sarcastically. "But the thing is, we still have to vote someone out tonight, one way or another. And Bliss is as good an option as any."

"Oh, little ol' me? Why not yo' pleasant little self?" Bliss continued in her accent. Seeing another argument about to begin, Eyrik shook his head and left the room.

"See?" Kylie asked angrily. "Now you guys have upset Eyrik!" As she left the cabin, Annalisia glared at Bliss. "I can't even be in the same room as you." And she stormed out.

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

As she was the only girl left on the team, Madeleine joined the five boys in their cabin. "VICTORY!" she shrieked as she ran in, throwing her hands in the air and making the #1 sign.

"Afrui," Danny mumbled in his sleep. It was a pretty bad concussion.

"We did it," Orion said, rolling his eyes. "We won. Awesome."

"Do I detect some sarcasm?" Maddie asked playfully, poking Orion's stomach.

"Nope. Not like we were planning on taking out D.P, or anything."

**Confessions:**

**Jason: As far as Orion and Troy are concerned, I'm with them. As far as Danny and Bliss are concerned, I'm with them. But honestly, I just want to get the hell off of this team!**

"Oh, yippee!" Maddie replied happily. "I'll go get some snacks and then we can _party_!"

As soon as she was gone, Troy and Orion gathered Ren and Jason into a huddle. "Where's your cat?" Ren asked curiously.

Jason pulled the carrying case off of his bunk. Although his entire body was now covered in claw marks, Jason had managed to conquer his phobia and capture the cat, who he had playfully named Ms. Mittens. "I got it."

Orion looked at him curiously. "Okay, whatever. So, in Total Drama history, one of the greatest alliances ever was the First Guys' Alliance, formed when four guys were at a disadvantage against seven girls. In our situation, the numbers are currently equal, but if you lump in Eyrik and Danny boy with the girls, it becomes four against eight."

"What are you saying?" Jason asked, confused over the history lesson. "Spit it out, nerd."

"Let's make a Guys' Alliance," Troy summed up quickly, patting Orion on the shoulder. "If you're in, put your hand in the middle."

Orion and Troy put their hands in together, with Ren close behind, and Jason in a reluctant fourth. Maddie then returned with chips and dip. "PARTY TIME!" she shrieked.

As the others whooped, Ren noticed Mickey run out of her cabin, and he followed after her.

**Confessions:**

**Troy: It's a good idea to officially draw the guys together for a classic Guys' Alliance. There's still the secret Bro Alliance as well, so let's hope things work out well for me.**

***Forest***

"Did you hear that?" Annalisia asked, jumpy. She and Ren had retreated to the forest to have a talk.

"Nope, nothing," Ren replied calmly. Going a little farther in silence, Ren broke the quiet. "I miss the way things used to be," he said softly.

Mickey clutched the bouquet he had given her. "I miss it too, Ren. But things have to change if we're going to work out."

"I promise you, I'm changing," Ren replied. "I even got along with Kylie. That's progress for any conscious human being."

Annalisia laughed. "Well, maybe…"

"And Mickey… I really do care about you."

**Confessions:**

**Annalisia: Ren is usually so sullen, such a jerk… when he opens up like this, it's almost like he's a completely different person.**

Annalisia and Ren walked in quiet for a bit more before Mickey pulled to a stop. "I know, Ren."

"So let's make this work," Ren said as calmly as he could. "Please?"

Annalisia thought about it for a few seconds. "Alright," she said in a wide grin. Ren smirked and pulled in to kiss her but Mickey put a finger to his lips. "But promise me. Calm down on the jerkiness."

"Yeah, yeah, I promise," Ren said with a wave of his hand. As he moved in to kiss her again, Annalisia put her finger to his lips again.

"And," she added, "No secrets. Any. At all. This game is getting too unpredictable, and if I'm going to lose you… I'd at least like to know that it's coming."

**Confessions:**

**Ren: There's the catch. I want to tell Mickey but John – there's John to consider. He warned me about the girls, and Mickey is one of those girls. So do I tell her about Danny and Jason and Troy? No. At least, not yet.**

Ren grinned arrogantly. "Yeah, no secrets." And then Mickey pressed her lips to his.

***Dock of Shame***

As Harold flew off in the Shuttle of Failures screaming, and Izzy dove in and out of the waters pretending to be a dolphin, Chris grinned. "And that concludes another thrilling chapter of Total Drama Reach for the Stars! Next time – the most dramatic elimination ceremony yet, and a twist that nobody sees coming! All here, when we come back!"

* * *

**Team StarKid:** Danny, Jason, Madeleine, Orion, Ren, Troy

**Team Extraterrestrial: **Annalisia, Bliss, Christy, Eyrik, Jada, Kylie

**Eliminated:** Jeremiah, John, Lauren

**So Team Extraterrestrial – elimination time! How do you guys feel about all the alliances we've got going? Covert Affair, the Bro Alliance, the Guys' Alliance, the Underdogs… and I guess the Fearsome Five still exists in name! Deception runs afoot, and the only thing you can count on is Chris McLean being Chris McLean. Sorry that this took so long to get done. School has been insane for the both of us, and TDKH was away on a retreat all weekend. I hope this chapter is satisfying to everyone. ^_^**


	14. And Things Blow UpNow

Chris grinned as Team Extraterrestrial sat at the campfire pit. Mickey and Jada sat together in their usual corner; Christy and Kylie sat together towards the middle, and Bliss and Eyrik individually sat alone.

Chris grinned. "Welcome back to elimination, kiddies! Third loss out of five. Ouch. Must sting."

"Not as much as it'll sting when I slug you," Jada muttered. Mickey rested a hand on her friend's arm, attempting to calm her down.

**Confessions:**

**Annalisia: Things aren't looking so good. Bliss has got everyone convinced that she's so nice, and if they're not voting for her, odds are that they're voting for me and Jada.**

"How are you guys feeling, though?" Chris asked with a sarcastic grin. "I mean, going into the final portion, you guys had a huge advantage. Three against one. And that one was D.P. How'd you manage to pull off a loss?"

"Danny was just too good," Kylie threw out. "There's nothing we could've done, even if we'd had the whole team supporting us."

Annalisia rolled her eyes. "Please! If just _one_ more people had joined us, we would've stood a chance. But no. Any one of you!"

Christy blushed slightly, feeling responsible for their loss, but it was Bliss who came to their defense. "Right, sure. But even with someone else, Danny still would've won. It wouldn't have mattered."

"You're just saying that because you like him," Jada retorted.

"I do not, alright?" Bliss replied calmly and coldly. "And I bet you if I did, I wouldn't stab him in the back, like say… you did to Rain?"

"But maybe just one person could've tipped the scales," Chris interjected, trying to bring things back on topic. "One person could've outlasted Danny."

"Exactly!" Annalisia exclaimed. "Any one of you quitters…"

Jada turned her head slowly to face her friend. "_Excuse_ me? Didn't you tell me to take the item?"

Mickey shook her head. "That's different!"

"No, it's not! You're blaming me for this loss! You're calling me a quitter!" Jada exclaimed, standing up in frustration.

"And things blow up now," Bliss snickered to Christy.

"I guess," Christy replied.

**Confessions:**

**Christy: I know I'm working with Bliss now, but I still don't like my friends arguing…**

Eyrik calmly got up from his stump and moved a fuming Jada away from Annalisia. Eyrik then pointed to Chris, indicating that he should get the ceremony started.

"Whatever," Chris replied with a wave of his hand. "Anyways, this season, if or when you're voted off, you must walk down the Dock of Shame, climb the Stairs of Loserdom, and board the Shuttle of Failures, where you will promptly be flown off of this island. As in _forever._" He let them sink it in for a few seconds.

"Now, first safe is…"

"C-H-R-I-S-ty!" he called out in a jingle. Christy nodded happily and got her marshmallow.

"And… Enigmatic Eyrik!" Eyrik calmly stood up and joined Christy.

"And… the man-slayer, Kylie!" Kylie agitatedly snapped at Chris, who rolled his eyes and threw the marshmallow at her.

This left Jada, Annalisia, and Bliss still sitting down. Chris shook his head. "The bottom three! Just one step away from being safe. And that one safe contestant is…"

"Annalisia!" Annalisia happily got up to get her marshmallow. She meant to high-five Jada, but she was glaring at her friend, so she decided against it.

"Jada. Bliss," Chris began, talking to the contestants in the bottom. "You're in the hotseat! Jada, today you disappointed your team by taking a bust, and your sarcasm combined with lack of friendships tips the scales against you, but you have been a good challenge performer in the past. Bliss, you disappointed as well by taking your high heels, and while your previous performances have been less than stellar, somehow you've managed to stir up allies with your kindness. Now remember, the safe contestant will be able to make a trade next time. The contestant who is going to be eliminated, however, is…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Neither one of you! It's a reward challenge!" Chris exclaimed gleefully.

Bliss sighed in relief and Jada was utterly shocked, her mouth open. Bliss snickered. "Careful, you'll catch bugs!"

Annalisia threw her hands up in consternation. "Last time there was a reward challenge, there was no reward! Is there something this time?"

"Last time," Chris interjected, "The reward actually was slightly better cafeteria food. In case you'd care to notice."

"So," Christy asked cautiously, "What's the reward this time?"

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

Maddie, Orion, and Troy had liberated a radio and some snacks, and were partying with Ren and Jason. Danny drifted in and out of consciousness from his concussion, occasionally saying things like, "THE JURY!" or "Potato socks."

"I'd like to make a toast," Troy called out, standing on top of the ping pong table they'd moved into the cabin, "To victory, friends, and an unconscious Danny!"

Everyone, including Ren, found themselves laughing and joining in on the toast. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

Ren, learning a complicated and strange dance from Madeleine, called out, "It's the other team!"

Jason, who was having a soda chugging competition with Troy, called out, "Yo, wanna get that, dude?"

Orion nodded, put down his drink, and opened the door.

Standing there was a girl with several bags and a suitcase with her. She smiled at Orion. "Hey."

Orion could only get out one word.

"Brooke."

* * *

**Well! I bet that nobody saw that one coming! Thoughts? Opinions? Hopes? I sure hope this twist will please you all!**

**_Votes:_**

**Annalisia: **Damn it! If I vote for Bliss, the numbers might not be in my favor. Kylie and Christy fell for her stupid fakey-niceness! UGH! I know Jada and Eyrik'll be on my side, but...is that enough? Lets hope so. Bliss.

**Bliss:** Danny said aim high? What's higher than a fourth place loser? Adios, Jadork!

**Christy:** I think the smartest thing for working with Bliss would be to vote off Jada. I'm sorry!

**Eyrik: ***Eyrik walks in the confessional, as stoic as usual. He sits down on the confessional and pulls a notepad from his back pocket. He silently writes the name of the person he's voting off on his piece of paper. As usual, he doesn't show the name, but 'Bliss' can be seen clearly enough. He gets up and walks out*

**Jada:** It's about damn time that we finally got rid of Bliss!

**Kylie:** What's best for the team… voting off Bliss. I know she's been so nice and everything, but in order to keep peace… she has to go.

**=_= stupid me is stupid for waiting so long to put this up...sorry for the wait...**


	15. Soup With a Fork

**Oh God, you don't even know how sorry I am. Things have been so hectic, and the hurricane... please please forgive me. After this, I'll have the Aftermath up in no time! I promise! **

* * *

Chris stood gleaming on the Dock of Shame. "Last time, on Total Drama Reach for the Stars! Alliances abounded, with Danny and Bliss forming the Underdogs with Christy, Maddie and Eyrik in Covert Affair, Guys' Alliance with Ren, Troy, Jason, and Orion, and the Bro Alliance with Orion and Troy all replacing the fallen Fearsome Five. Jason continued to play as a double agent as Danny and Bliss switched teams, putting Danny with an entire team against him. But in the end, it was Danny who managed to pull off an impossible win and save his team from elimination. At the Team Extraterrestrial elimination ceremony, Jada and Bliss were in the bottom two when it was revealed to be a reward challenge, and Orion was utterly shocked by his romance Brooke's return to the game. So what will happen this time on Total! Drama! Reach for the Stars!?"

***Mess Hall***

Chef looked around in the kitchen. "Now where is that damn knife? It's been missing for too long! Damn knives…"

A sullen Orion sat by himself in the mess hall, alone. He angrily pounded the table. Chef Hatchet peered his head out from the kitchen. "Musical Maggot! Why the pent up aggression?" he called out.

Orion shook his head. "It… it's nothing, Chef."

_*Flashback*_

_Orion and Brooke walked through the woods silently. Brooke intertwined her hands in Orion's. "We're finally back together," she said happily._

_Orion smiled. "Yeah… finally." He stopped walking, and Brooke turned to face him._

_"What's wrong?" Brooke asked, concerned._

_"It's just… this isn't the place it was last time. Everyone's at each other's throats. It's everyone for themselves, pretty much."_

_Brooke squeezed his hand. "As long as we're together, though, everything will be better. Everything's always better when we're together."_

_Orion shook his head. "I wish that was true…" He made to continue but Brooke just pulled him into a kiss._

_"We're together," she whispered as they pulled apart. Brooke had missed Orion terribly. "Everything is going to be better. Let's just spend this time together, now." It felt like one of her books. The heroes getting the happiness they deserved._

_Orion angrily punched a tree. "No, Brooke! You don't understand! Our relationship isn't going to fix everything. It just isn't. I need you to understand that."_

_Brooke looked hurt. "I… I'm sorry that you feel that way…" As she held back tears, turned, and hurried off. Orion stood there, shaking his head and tears falling down his face._

**Confessions:**

**Orion: Leave it to Chris McLean to pull something like this on me. Things were going so great. I love having Brooke here, so much. But everything is just so _complicated_ now…**

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

Kylie got up out of her bed. She stretched and then sighed. Christy, also awake, lying on her bunk, noticed. "Um, what's up, Kylie?"

Kylie shrugged. "Things are just getting so tense lately. I mean, after this elimination especially. We'll never be able to pull off a win like this."

"We can try, though," Christy said softly. "I was first out last time, and there is no chance I'm giving up on our team. Win or lose, compete until we're eliminated."

**Confessions:**

**Kylie: I really love seeing how Christy is asserting herself more. She used to be so quiet, so shy…**

As Annalisia began to stir, Kylie smiled at her friend. "Yeah, you're right. At least we've got some good friends here. Like you, Orion… maybe even Troy, I guess."

Christy laughed. "You and Orion sure are getting pretty close now, huh?"

"Yeah," Kylie replied with a laugh. "I can't see anything ruining a friendship like that."

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

Eyrik enjoyed having the cabin to himself. It always gave him the freedom to think. And right now, thinking was something he needed to do.

_*Flashback*_

_Returning from the elimination ceremony, Eyrik retreated into the forest while the tired girls all went to sleep._

_As he sat perched in one of his favorite trees towards the middle of the forest, he was surprised to hear someone running past. When they stopped, apparently crying, Eyrik was even more shocked to see who it was._

_"…Brooke?" Eyrik asked quietly._

_The bookworm snapped her head up to the trees. "Eyrik? Was that you?"_

_Eyrik leapt down, landing almost directly in front of her. His sudden appearance startled her, and she stumbled; Eyrik caught her and she steadied herself._

_Brooke smiled into the enigma's face. Wiping some of the tears from her eyes, she said, "It's so nice to see a friendly face." Eyrik gestured towards her face, wiping a tear from her cheek. "Oh, this? It's nothing. Me and Ori just got into a little argument… I don't know what happened. All I want is us to be close. Everything's different now."_

_Eyrik felt Brooke's cheek with the back of his hand. It felt so familiar to both of them, it felt so right, but yet… "Eyrik. I can't," Brooke replied with a whimper. "I… can't."_

_Eyrik nodded solemnly and retreated into the trees, leaving Brooke alone._

Eyrik sat up in his bunk. _I did this before,_ he thought to himself. _It didn't work out. I can't ruin things again._

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

Troy and Ren stood playing a heated early game of ping pong while Jason and Danny continued to sleep.

"Interesting turn of events," Ren grunted as he served the ball back to Troy, who expertly hit it back. Ren missed and it fell to the floor.

Troy shrugged. "I guess. But nothing can catch a master ninja like me off guard!"

"Except for just about everything," Ren grumbled as Danny began to awake. "Morning, sleeping beauty," Ren chided as he left the room, heading for the showers.

Danny scratched his head, confused. "Um, Troy? Why am I in this cabin? I'm not on your team."

Troy laughed. "Sure, sure. Remember? You and Bliss switched."

"Um… why?" Danny asked, growing more and more confused.

"Because… wait, why would _you_ think?" Troy asked, curiously.

Danny considered it for a moment. "Well… now we've got the four strongest members of the Fearsome Five on one team. Bliss is the weakest link, so I guess it made sense to leave her unprotected."

Jason roused drowsily. "Fearsome Five? Danny, what are you talking about?"

"Our alliance? Remember?" Danny asked, laughing. "Oh, you guys are punking me or something! I must've hit my head, right? Real funny, guys."

Troy and Jason exchanged curious glances. Troy shrugged and grinned. "You found us out, Danny ol' boy! Fearsome Five Forever!"

**Confessions:**

**Troy: Alright, maybe that concussion hit Danny boy a bit harder than we thought. But I'm still going to keep a close eye on him. A ninja is constantly vigilant!**

**Danny: Do I really have amnesia? No. But it puts me in a much better place, strategically, if I do. My main concern is carrying Bliss and myself to the merge. I should be safe with my recent amnesia rendering me as a much smaller threat, and Bliss has allies on the other team. Everything is going well, if I may say.**

***Boys' Showers***

Ren walked in, whistling an abstract tune, when out of nowhere someone did a jumping kick into his chest, laughing manically. "Good morning, Senor Ren!" Maddie chirped happily.

Ren picked himself up from the ground. "Um, Madds… any particular reason why you just assaulted me?"

"Because I needed to make sure you were alone," she whispered solemnly.

**Confessions:**

**Madeleine: I've decided that Ren is someone I can trust, so I'm going to show him the map!**

"And, why exactly are you in the boys' showers waiting for me?" Ren asked cautiously.

"There's a very simple explanation for that!" Maddie replied, nodding her head.

"Because you're crazy?"

"No! Because I have a _map_," she answered. This didn't have the intended effect, as Ren just appeared puzzled and agitated.

"And that is so relevant to me," Ren replied, rolling his eyes. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a shower to attend to…"

"It's a map," Maddie explained, "To a McLean Brand Immunity Head!"

Ren stopped cold in his tracks, he turned to face the crazy girl, a grin creeping onto his face. "So...about that map..."

***Mess Hall***

A little while later, Annalisia and Jada sat talking at one of the tables, while Ren and Madeleine were in the midst of a rapid discussion with Eyrik sitting near them, and Orion sat, still by himself.

Troy walked in with Danny; the latter went to get food, and Troy came to Orion's table and said, "Man, do we have to talk."

At Annalisia and Jada's table, the topic was tense. Jada glared at her friend. "You really didn't have to say that stuff last night."

"You know I didn't mean it like that," Mickey replied gently. "I don't blame you for our loss."

"Good. Because you shouldn't," Jada replied with a smirk.

Annalisia shook her head. "We really can't be mad at each other right now. Especially after last night. You could've been going home!"

"Nah, I wasn't even scared in the least," Jada commented sarcastically. After a few moments of silence, she added, "But yeah. We need to stick together. The whole team is practically against us. We need each other."

Annalisia smiled. "Friends?"

"_Best_ friends," Jada corrected, and the two girls laughed.

Over at their table, Maddie finished explaining to Ren the story about the immunity head. Eyrik looked on in silence, looking impassive, with thoughts of the previous night going through his head. "So you're telling me that this head thing is hidden somewhere on the island," Ren began, summing things up, "and that you have a map to it, and you think that Izzy is still on the island somewhere helping you find it?"

"Of course! Is that so hard to believe?" Maddie replied with a crazy grin.

**Confessions:**

**Ren: Yes.**** But being on the same page with Maddie and Eyrik is good for me. I'll be covered on all angles.**

"No, no. It makes perfect sense," Ren replied.

"So you want to join our Covert Alliance?" Madeleine asked giddily.

"Sure," Ren replied without much enthusiasm, "As long as it's okay with Chatty Cathy over there."

"Eyrik! Is it okay with you? Eyrik!" Maddie asked. When Eyrik didn't reply, lost in thought, she continually poked him until he shook to attention. He nodded and Maddie grinned. "Huzzah!"

As Maddie got up and started doing some weird dance, Ren and Eyrik met eyes. Ren mouthed _Danny_, and Eyrik nodded with a small grin on his face that quickly vanished.

Outside, as Jason was walking in, he ran into Bliss. "Hi, Jason, baby," she said seductively, draping her arm around his shoulder.

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Ever since the Fearsome Five fell apart, it's been a necessity for Danny and me to get that walking sack of meat on our side. So now it's time to turn up the charm.**

Jason grinned at her. "Hey, babe. Listen, something really weird happened with Petersuck."

"Let's not concern ourselves with D.P," Bliss replied, walking slowly closer to him. She put her face inches from his. "Let's only worry about you and me." She drew him into a kiss.

"Ew, get a room," came a cold voice. The two pulled away and saw Christy standing next to a disgusted-looking Kylie. "Nobody wants to see you two jerks kissing."

"At least we've got someone to kiss," Jason replied smugly.

Bliss playfully shoved Jason. "Jason! Don't be so mean! It's cruel to remind her that she has no one to kiss!"

Kylie shook her head and started to tear up. Christy shook her head. "L-leave her alone, Jason!" Turning to her friend, she said, "Let's go inside."

Kylie and Christy walked inside and went to sit with Orion and Troy; Bliss and Jason quickly filed in as well. Danny cheerfully sat with Bliss and Jason. "Hey, Fearsome Five guys!"

Bliss stared at him with her mouth agape. "Told you that we had to talk about him," Jason whispered to her out of the corner of his mouth.

Bliss put her hand on Jason's shoulder. "Jase, baby. Please give me and Danny here a second alone, okay?"

"Sure thing, babe," Jason replied, pecking her on the lips before going to get food.

"_What the hell are you doing Danny?_" Bliss whispered quickly.

Danny grinned. "Don't worry! I'm fine. You know my concussion? Well, I'm pretending like it gave me amnesia. This way we get our allies back and the targets off our back."

"That is a pretty convenient plan that happened to occur just when it would be the most dramatic," Bliss mused, nodding in agreement. "Bu you're my Final Two deal. Are you sure the concussion didn't do anything that I should be worrying about?"

"No, of course not," Danny said, smiling. "Trust me, I'm 100% fine. Why do you ask?"

"Well," Bliss began, "You're trying to eat your soup with a fork."

Looking down at his meal, Danny replied, "...so I am."

At another table, Kylie sat fuming, occasionally pounding the table. Orion, Troy, and Christy all exchanged nervous glances.

"Um… so, how are you, Kylie?" Troy asked cautiously. Kylie burst into tears and Orion and Christy both glared at him. "What'd I say?!" he asked, throwing his hands up in defense.

"Jason was being a jerk," Christy explained.

Orion tentatively got closer to her. "Hey, you okay?"

"Guys are such assholes," was Kylie's response.

Orion pulled the reluctant girl into a hug. "Hey, it's okay. You're with friends now."

Troy turned to Christy with a sappy smile on his face. "Do you want to hug it all out too? I know you want to. I'm awesome and devilishly attractive." The shy girl laughed.

"I'm really glad to have you as a friend," Kylie whispered into Orion's ears.

It was then that Brooke walked in. "Brooke!" Orion exclaimed, quickly pulling out of the hug and causing Kylie to fall to the floor. "Sorry," he called down.

"Brooke's here?" Christy asked in disbelief. Her reaction quickly spread to the members of Team Extraterrestrial who hadn't witnessed her grand return.

Bliss grinned widely. "Oh. This is going to be fun. This is going to be really, really fun."

"What's this going to mean for Orion?" Annalisia asked to Jada, who merely shrugged.

"This is going to be so awkward," Christy whispered to Troy as Brooke walked towards them.

"Tell me about it," Troy whispered back.

_*Flashback*_

_Troy sat on the cabin's stoop, whistling tunelessly. Orion walked by from the forest. "So, where's your lady-friend?" Troy asked, making kissy noises._

_"Not in the mood, jackass," Ori replied, smacking Troy across the head as he retreated into the cabin._

_Rubbing the back of his head, Troy muttered, "So goddamn insensitive all the time… I'm not a jackass…"_

_A little while later, Brooke came walking in from the forest as well, her eyes slightly red. "Hey, Brooke," Troy called out, "Do you think I'm a jackass?"_

_Brooke, caught off-guard by the strange question, replied, "Ha, not really, Troy."_

_"Not really, eh? I'll take that," Troy mused. When Brooke made to go into her cabin, he called over, "Hey, sit and talk for a while. Let us old best friends catch up."_

_"Um… we were never best friends."_

_"Well it's never too late to start," he replied, making the bookworm giggle._

_"I guess." They sat in silence for a while. "So, um… how's Orion been?"_

_"Well, he recently fell in love with someone," Troy said calmly._

_Brooke looked shocked and surprised. "W-what?"_

_"Yeah. I have that affect on people. They just can't resist my charm."_

_Brooke laughed. "Troy, you really are a jackass!"_

_Troy thrust his hands into the air. "Why was I cursed with this!"_

_"Ha. But seriously. Orion said that things were just so much different than last time."_

_"If by different you mean that everyone is clawing at everyone else's throats like wanna-be Alpha wolves and that there are like several million alliances, then yes, I think you could call it different."_

_"Sounds like things are going to be pretty awkward," Brooke sighed._

_"Especially when Kylie finds out," Troy muttered to himself._

_"What'd you say, Troy?"_

_"I said that pancakes make me happy!"_

_"Oh. Yeah, me too."_

Kylie rose to her feet. "Oh… so Brooke is back?" she turned to Orion. "You must be so happy."

Brooke came up to them. "Uh… hey."

"Hi," Kylie replied, and she put her head down and went to go get some food.

"Can we talk?" Brooke asked Orion.

Turning to Troy, who nodded a yes, Orion replied, "Um, yeah. Sure thing."

"Not so fast!" Chris exclaimed as he popped up between the lovebirds, causing both of them to scream and stumble backwards. "Because it is challenge time!"

"Damn man always having to pop into my damn mess hall," Chef muttered from the kitchen. "Just when this damn show was getting good too… Damn couple reunites and I get no damn resolution to their issues…just as bad as breaking news interrupting my soap operas..."

Chris shrugged. "Um… okay, sure. So let me explain this challenge to you!"

"Or," came an interruption as Rosa walked in, "Let _me_ explain this challenge to you!" Shaking her head at Chris, she added, "Conveniently forgetting to tell me about challenge briefing once more? Petty, Chris."

"You say petty, I say it's my show," Chris sighed. "But sure! Whatever! Have your moment!" As he skulked off to the kitchen, Chris muttered, "Damn co-host always having to steal my thunder… just when I was going to do my damn monologue… I get no damn pleasure out of this damn show…"

Rosa shrugged. "Um… okay, sure. So let me explain this challenge to you!" Throwing her arms wide in front of her, she started, "This is the mess hall."

"You don't say," Ren commented grumpily, causing some of the others to laugh.

Rosa blushed in embarrassment. "Let me finish! You'll all have ten minutes, and only ten minutes, to escape this mess hall before the alien hunters arrive. The aliens will be armed with paintball guns, and if they shoot you, you're out. The last team standing wins!"

Jada grinned. "Boy, doesn't this challenge feel familiar…"

_*Flashback*_

_"That is it! I am done running! DONE!" Jada shouted tired, and she sat on the dock. She heard clapping. She looked up to see Mickey, and Kelvin, whom was holding Tonia over his shoulder._

_"Hey can you put me down now?" Tonia asked. He nodded and set her down._

_"WE WON!" they all heard screams from nearby. The Killer Apes and the Screaming Emus have been released. The KA's hugged Jada and then went to go get some sleep, while the SE's trudged back to their cabins._

**Confessions:**

**Jada: Last season, I won a challenge that was really similar to this one. So I'm pretty confident I'll be able to do it again!**

**Madeleine: I was so sad that I didn't get to do this challenge last season! But now I get to do it this time and have fun with it. Yay!**

"So, good luck!" Rosa answered before joining a muttering Chris and Chef in the kitchen.

"Wait!" Chris exclaimed suddenly. Picking up a rather large sack, he tossed it to the middle of the room. "Since Team Extraterrestrial is down a member, they get what's in the sack!"

As Christy opened up the bag, a fist shot out and punched her in the face. "McLean!" came a voice as the fist was joined by a body climbing out of the sack. "You can't do this to me!"

"Like what you did was saintly..." Christy mumbled, holding her throbbing nose.

As the other girls drooled over the handsomeness, Chris grinned. "I sure can! Behold your Total Drama Classic Competitor – Justin! Who will be helping the team in this challenge. And your ten minutes begin… now!"

Team StarKid – Brooke, Danny, Jason, Madeleine, Orion, Ren, and Troy – pulled into a huddle. "Let's try to think of a way out of this," Brooke began.

Moments later, Maddie yelped, "COWABUNGA!" and nimbly jumped out of a window, glass crashing in.

As she ran off, laughing strangely, Ren sighed and opened the window and climbed out. "I'll watch her. Try not to lose this challenge, idiots," he added, deliberately glaring at Danny.

"Well, there's our way out," Brooke pointed out. "What should we do now? Hide?"

Troy grinned. "I think it's alien-fighting time. You game, Orion?"

"Yeah, man," Orion replied with a devilish grin. Brooke tugged at his arm.

"Um, Orion… I was kind of hoping we could stay together this challenge… talk?"

"Um, yeah, that'd be nice," Orion replied. Turning back to Troy, his friend made a sound like a whip and flipped out of the open window. The couple followed out after him.

"So, looks like it's just you and me, Jeremiah," Danny commented cheerfully.

Jason looked confused. "Um… I'm Jason…"

**Confessions:**

**Danny: Okay, maybe the concussion messed up my head a _little_ bit…**

With Team Extraterrestrial – Annalisia, Bliss, Christy, Eyrik, Jada, and Kylie, with help from Justin – Justin was attempting to take charge. "Listen up, I'm a veteran! So I won't be coming up with any ideas and I'm just here to look pretty. Okay?"

"Remind you of anyone?" Jada whispered to Annalisia.

_*Flashback*_

_Another boat pulled up. A boy with platinum blond hair steeped off the boat. He wore a black T-shirt and blue jeans. He was tall, muscular, and HOT. All the girls except Thunder swooned._

_"Deacon, muh man, welcome to TDRW!"_

_"Ah, Chris, I believe this show just got 10x hotter. Too bad you can't make girls do that." he points to Beatice and Jada. Chris opens his mouth, but gets cut off. "Better watch out, someone might take your job, someone, better looking."_

_"GO OVER THERE!" Chris ordered, annoyed._

"Oh, definitely," Annalisia whispered back, laughing. Justin and Deacon were pretty similar.

"Who thinks they've got a pretty good plan?" Christy asked to the group. No one answered.

"Well, we could…" Kylie began, but she was interrupted by loud alarms going off and the room filling with fog. "What gives, McLean!" she growled angrily. "You said ten minutes!"

Chris' voice played over the loudspeakers. "Oh, yeah. About that… I lied."

"You lied?" Kylie asked, incredulous. "But you can't do that!"

"Girl, you better stop," Bliss commented, "You're having an argument with a loudspeaker. And losing."

Then, the aliens walked in – three of them. They were about average height but their bodies were completely green and they wore uniform black jeans and camouflage t-shirts, each holding a paintball gun.

"Paintball alien time, partners," came the very deep voice of one of the aliens, who quickly aimed at Eyrik. The enigma nimbly ducked out of the way and quickly turned one of the tables on its side, acting as a shield. The rest of the team gathered behind it, and on a suggestion from Annalisia, lifted it up for use as a battering ram.

"Move!" the same alien commanded again, and its partners moved out of the way quickly. With the distraction, Team Extraterrestrial managed to sneak out through the window except for Justin, who ended up at the back.

"I'll handle this one," one of the aliens said, and the other two nodded and hurried after their prey.

"Um," Justin started, "I don't know what you plan to do to me, per say, but I'd prefer if you didn't specifically injure my face, head, hands, feet, pinky toe, right collarbone, left kneecap, spinal cord, or gluttious maximus…"

"What about your lips?" the alien asked.

Justin gasped. "No! I need those!"

The alien ripped off its head, which turned out to be a mask. And underneath that mask was a girl. "Let's just make out, okay?"

Justin grinned. "Sure thing. I remember you from my tv... I think your name was Lauren?"

***Forest***

"Maddie!" Ren growned angrily. He wished that she hadn't ran off without giving him any warning. "Maddie! We need to stick together!"

"Nuh-uh, gotta catch me!" came Maddie's reply in a sing-song voice.

"It's always gotta be so damn difficult," Ren complained under his breath before hurrying off after the voice.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

Christy, almost out of breath, ran into the cabin to hide. For this she almost lost her head due to a very sharp ninja star being thrown at her neck; she ducked just in time and the star stuck itself into the door. "AAH!" she screeched.

"Shush!" came a voice. Troy leapt in front of her and covered her mouth with his hand. "You don't want to draw them to us," he whispered to her.

Christy nodded, and Troy pulled his hand away. "What are you doing here?" she whispered to him.

Troy shrugged. "If you were looking for me, would you come here?"

Christy considered this for a minute. "Well, I guess not." She turned to the ninja star embedded in the door. "Hey, doesn't Chris always confiscate all your ninja stuff?"

"He sure does," Troy replied with a devilish grin. "But that's why I've been whittling my own!"

_*Flashback*_

_While Chef was watching Wizards of Waverly Place, Troy nimbly snuck into the kitchen and plucked up a particularly sharp knife._

_"NO!" came a sharp exclaim. Troy froze in place. Chef added, "Mason is the best thing to happen to you, damn stupid Alex Russo…"_

_Breathing a sigh of relief, Troy hurriedly escaped the mess hall altogether and returned to a pile of logs he'd amassed in his cabin. "Time to get to work!"_

**Confessions:**

**Troy: You get a lot of down time on the show that they don't always play on-camera. It helps to have a hobby to get you through it all. And my hobby is carving death stars. Haha… Death Star…**

"Did you see the aliens?" Troy asked the quiet girl, getting back on topic.

Christy nodded. "There was three of them. They were pretty scary…"

Troy grinned. "Don't worry, grand ninja Troy will protect you from the big bad aliens."

Outside, they heard the deep voices of the aliens. "Should we check the cabins?" one growled.

"Who'd be so bloody stupid as to hide in there?" came the other's growl, and the two chuckled.

Troy grinned. "That'd be us. Time for some alien-fighting. I'll drive them away and then you can escape, okay, sugar?" he said flirtily.

Christy blushed slightly. "But… but we're on opposite teams! Why would you do that?" In response, Troy quickly kissed her.

"Call us even," he replied smugly before leaping out of the door. "Face my wrath, alien scum!"

"Holy shit, those are sharp!" one of the startled aliens exclaimed.

"NO CURSING!" came McLean's voice.

"Holy shit how'd you do that!" the other alien exclaimed.

"Eat my dust alien bitches!" Troy exclaimed loudly. He was thoroughly entertained.

Christy sat down on one of the cabin beds. "Well… that was something."

***Boathouse***

Orion and Brooke sat, panting, having ran there from the mess hall. "I think we'll be safe here," Orion grunted, "At least for a little while. If the aliens don't get me, exhaustion will."

Brooke chuckled. "I've missed your sense of humor, Ori."

"And I've missed you."

They sat in silence for a little while. "I'm sorry about last night," Brooke threw out.

"You shouldn't be," Orion replied. "I was being a tool. The tension was just really getting to me, you know?"

"I know," Brooke replied softly.

_*Flashback*_

_Brooke returned to her cabin to see Madeleine hanging upside down from her bunk. "Brooke! Welcome to the teaaaaaaaaaam!" the crazy girl sang joyfully. She jumped down and wrapped Brooke in a tight bear hug._

_"It's good to be on the team," Brooke replied with a smile._

_After catching up for a while, Brooke popped the question that'd been on her mind. "Maddie, how're things?"_

_"Things are fine! Johnny boy left me, but the weather's pretty good, the food isn't so bad…"_

_"Maddie… You know what I mean."_

_Madeleine shrugged. "Things have been… strange. First Jeremiah, then Johnny, then Lauren? Those three as the first ones gone really strikes you. It's a super tough game this time around. And there's so many alliances, so little trust between us. Personally, I don't really know who to trust, except for Eyrik. Maybe Ren too."_

_"It's that bad?" Brooke asked in disbelief. "We may not have always seen eye to eye last season, but we were all friends. We all got along."_

_"Well, that's reality television for youuuuuuuuuu," Maddie sang. "Brings out the worst in all of us."_

"I'm ready to get back in this game with you, Orion," she said quietly. "We were Final Three last time. Let's make Final Two together now. I don't want to spend a day here without you."

**Confessions:**

**Orion: The thing I loved about Brooke and me… things kinda seemed surreal last time. There was no pressure between us, we liked each other and were happy being together. But now there's definitely pressure. And I don't know what's going to happen.**

"I don't want to be here without you either Brookeworm," he replied, putting his hand in hers and pulling her in for a kiss.

***Zero Gravity Chamber***

Bliss ran into the chamber, sure that there was an alien on her tail. She was quickly pelted by several dodgeballs. "Wait, it's a friend!" came a commanding voice.

Bliss angrily glared to see Danny and a sheepish Jason looking over at her. "Sorry, Bliss, but this is our base," Danny ordered.

Bliss impatiently tapped her foot. "But Fearsome Five needs to stick together!"

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Danny may be the 'leader' of the Fearsome Five, but that doesn't mean he gets to call all the shots. Who does he think he is?!**

Danny turned to Jason. "Jason, buddy, I want to solidify the trust our alliance has. And if you want to solidify your trust with me, you'll pelt a member of our alliance with red rubber balls."

"Um…" Jason replied.

**Confessions:**

**Jason: Bliss is hot and scary. Danny is smart and scary. All I came here to do was kiss babes…**

Jason decided that smart and scary was worse than hot and scary and pelted Bliss with dodgeballs until she gave up. "Have your god damn zero gravity thing!" Bliss grumbled. "I don't give a shit!"

"Will Bliss please stop cursing," came Chris' voice from the loudspeakers. "That's Bliss, to please stop cursing."

"Piss off McLean!"

"You did good, Jason," Danny replied. "The Fearsome Five is as strong and solid as ever! Unless there's something you need to tell me…"

"NOPE I HAVE NOTHING TO TELL YOU AT ALL," Jason replied.

"Stop screaming!" Danny whispered, putting a finger to his lips. "You'll draw the aliens right to us!"

As if in response, a paintball shot out and hit Danny square in the chest. "I've wanted to do that for a while," came the alien's voice.

Jason turned to the single alien standing before him, guarding the only door out of the chamber. "So, alien scum," Jason began arrogantly, "Are you going to move, or am I going to have to move you?"

"Or, mate, am I going to have to shoot you with these painty balls of doom?" came the deep alien voice.

"Or no," Jason replied simply before thrusting several dodgeballs at the alien. The alien took aim with its paintball gun to shoot the balls and knock them out of the air before they hit it. Jason continued to throw the balls from different angles and the alien kept shooting the balls down.

Using his targeting of the balls as a distraction, Jason attempted to slide on the floor under the alien's legs to an escape. Unfortunately for him, the floor wasn't waxed, and Jason instead fell on his face. As he picked himself up, the alien shook his head. "Expected more of a challenge, mate."

And then Jason got a face full of paint.

***Dock of Shame***

One cannon boom echoed across camp, followed shortly after by a second boom. "If Chris is starting with his Hunger Games crap again…" Jada muttered while she walked cautiously with Annalisia.

In a cloud of purple smoke, Chris appeared and pushed her into the water. "No one disses the Hunger Games!" In another cloud of purple smoke, he disappeared.

"Damn host," Mickey grumbled as she helped haul her friend out of the water, only to thrust her back in and jump in herself when she noticed an alien in her peripheral vision. The two girls swam to right underneath the dock, where they floated, waiting.

"What's going on, man," Jada asked, concerned. Mickey put a finger to her lips and Jada got the message.

"Come out, come out, wherever ya'll are," came the deep boom of the alien.

"What kind of alien has a fake country accent?" Annalisia asked, unimpressed.

Realization hit Jada like a brick. "Mickey, you don't think that…" She never finished her thought as the alien poked its head out under the dock and aiming upside-down landed a paintball on her.

"AAH!" Mickey exclaimed. She quickly swam out and pulled the alien over the edge of the dock into the water, and used its disorientation to quickly escape on to the beach.

Jada floated over to the alien. "You just can't stay away from me, could you?" she asked sarcastically.

The alien nodded. "No chance, sugar."

***Cabin Area***

When the third cannon boomed, Kylie nervously poked her head around. "We really need to win this challenge…" she muttered. In response, a paintball came soaring out and hit her in the back.

"That's just unsportsmanlike!" she exclaimed, turning around to see the alien; the alien was laughing, a grotesque sound to hear through the deep voice.

"Nobody said we had to be sportsmanlike, ducky," was its reply as the fourth cannon went off.

"Well, thank god for that," came a competitive voice. The alien ducked just in time to avoid the ninja star, and turned to see Troy standing with several more, and his pockets filled to the brim with them. "Let's have some fun, you and me."

He tossed two stars; the alien dodged the first, but the second one grazed his arm. "Oi! Back off mate!" the alien yelped.

"Not a chance," Troy replied with a devilish smirk. "Not a chance!"

***Boathouse***

"What's that?" Orion asked cautiously. In answer to his question, someone came crashing through the door and tripped in front of them. Brooke leapt into Orion's arms and both screamed.

"Relax, it's just me!" Annalisia said to calm them down. "Chill out!"

Brooke gave a huge sigh of relief and got out of Orion's arms. "Thank gosh! I was half-convinced that you had an alien on your tail…" And then a paintball came and hit her in the chest. "I'm down!" she exclaimed.

Both Orion and Annalisia turned towards the doorway where the alien was standing cockily, aiming the paintball gun at them. "Who's next?"

An unspoken exchange occurred between the two contestants; Annalisia charged at the alien, who dodged and tried to shoot her, but Orion grabbed onto the gun and Mickey escaped.

"That's the one I was after," the alien growled, and Orion shrugged. "Oops, sucks for mister alien." Picking up the hook formerly worn by Duncan, he swiped the gun from the alien's hand and it skittered across the floor. "Mano-to-alieno now, I guess," Orion said with a grin.

The alien shrugged and dived for the gun, but Orion stuck the hook on its t-shirt. Cloth ripped off of the shirt, however, allowing the alien to grab the gun. Orion was right on his tail and grasped onto its face; half of it came off, however, and the alien grabbed the gun and aimed at the now defenseless musician.

"Goddamn it, Miah," he muttered as the country boy shot him.

"Nice rangling with you, tex," Jeremiah replied, his face half alien mask and half country boy, as the two cannons went off.

***Forest***

It was about ten minutes later, and Ren was still chasing after Maddie. "Madeleine! Can we please stop this! There's a challenge to win!"

"Have you noticed any aliens?" Maddie asked him, appearing at a branch above him.

Ren considered this and shook his head in defeat. "Well, I guess not. You're pretty clever, Maddie. Good strategy."

"Strategy? I was just asking because it's been a long time!" Maddie replied, laughing crazily before swinging away on vines.

Ren rolled his eyes and meant to follow after her before he was hit by a paintball. The alien was already running past him after Madeleine before the seventh cannon boom.

"Madds!" Ren shouted out angrily as she turned around in the branches, narrowly avoiding several paintballs.

"You'll never take me alive… Jeremiah?" she asked in surprise.

Jeremiah took advantage of her momentary confusion to shoot her, and he caught her as she plummeted from the tree branch. "Surprise, surprise," he replied as the eighth cannon went off.

***Cabin Area***

The alien had finally been cornered by John, and was stuck to the cabin wall with ninja stars pinning his clothing. "You've embarrassed me enough, mate…"

"Not enough, per say," Troy replied, picking up the paintball gun that the alien had dropped in the scuffle. Standing straight and puffing out his chest, he said, "And now, time to unmask this villain! It was definitely the creepy butler, Sebastian!" Pulling off the alien mask, Troy gasped. "Jinkies! It's John Solorio!"

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

Christy hid patiently underneath her bed. She'd been judging by the cannon fire, and since eight shots had gone off, that meant there were only five contestants left in the challenge. "Almost there," she muttered.

The door suddenly opened and closed, and Christy could tell from the heels that Bliss had recently won that it was her.

_*Flashback*_

_Bliss sat in her cabin. "Oh, shoes… how I've missed fine, fashionable shoes…"_

_"Bliss… I'm right here…" Christy said._

_"Let me have this moment… Oh, my babies… Shoes…"_

"Hey, Underdog," Christy called out, and Bliss nearly had a heart attack.

Hearing Christy laughing under the bed, Bliss stomped her foot. "Not funny, Christy!"

Hearing someone rustle with the door, Bliss dove and rolled underneath with her. "Keep quiet!" Bliss whispered.

"Is anyone here?" came a female voice. When there was no answer, Annalisia sighed. "Finally, a chance to rest."

As she sat down on the bunk, Bliss yelled, "Boo!" Annalisia jumped off of the bunk and thudded onto the floor, and the two Underdogs rolled out, laughing.

Annalisia shook her head. "Whatever. At least we're all still safe."

As the three girls took a moment to celebrate still having a chance of winning, the door burst open and Jeremiah appeared, rapidly shooting all three of them. "Well, it was fun while it lasted," he said with a grin.

As three cannons boomed, leaving only two contestants left in the game, Eyrik perched himself above the cabin, stealthily ready to pounce on Jeremiah, when suddenly someone shot him. As Eyrik tumbled off of the cabin and was caught by Jeremiah, Troy stood a few feet away grinning widely. "Oh, that was fun."

"No!" Bliss exclaimed. "We lost again!"

"Not yet," came Chris' voice from the loudspeaker.

"Hey, Eyrik," Jeremiah commented as he threw the enigma off of him. "What do you mean, Chrissy boy?" Jeremiah called to the loudspeaker.

"There's still Troy-o over there, and one more participator for Team Extraterrestrial!" Chris replied before shutting the loudspeaker off.

Troy and Jeremiah looked at each other. "Annalisia," Troy started, counting off on his fingers.

"Bliss," Jeremiah added.

"Christy."

"Eyrik."

"Jada."

"Kylie."

"Then who's left…" John wondered, paying attention while pinned to the wall.

And it hit both Troy and Jeremiah at the same time. As both boys turned to the mess hall, they exclaimed, "Justin!"

Troy reacted first, running towards the mess hall with John's paintball gun. Jeremiah was right on the ninja's tail, shooting paintball after paintball at him. As Troy reached the mess hall, he launched himself in through the window while Jeremiah simply walked through the front door. Both were disgusted by what they saw.

Justin entangled his lips from Lauren's. "Um, do you mind?" Two paintball shots then went off, and one hit Justin while one hit Troy. "Oh, my back! I bruise so easily on my back!" Justin exclaimed.

Lauren rolled her eyes. "Oh, gosh, you're such a girl!"

Jeremiah turned to the loudspeaker. "Chris? Rosa? Chef? Some figure of authority? Who won this challenge?"

The loudspeaker turned on and Rosa's voice was heard. "After careful examination, both Troy and Jeremiah fired their paintball guns at almost the exact same second. But one was mildly faster, and it was…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Troy! He shot Justin first, and Team StarKid takes the win!" Rosa announced.

"Oh yeah, buddy!" Troy exclaimed, doing a very abstract dance. An agitated Jeremiah shot him several times with the paintball gun.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

"Jeremiah played us all good," Jada grumbled. "That country bastard."

"Here, here!" Christy, Annalisia, and Bliss chanted.

"Unfortunately," Annalisia pointed out, "We can't vote out Jeremiah." She turned to Jada. "I mean… can we?"

"Nope," her friend laughed.

Kylie rose. "Hey, I know things are tensiony enough between all of us. So instead of pointing fingers, why don't we just… I don't know… leave it be. Let the pieces fall where they may. We all did our best this challenge."

Annalisia and Bliss exchanged glares. Finally, Bliss shrugged. "Sure. Sounds good to me, Kylie." Eyrik nodded too, inwardly happy that there would be no more arguing this time around. As everyone filed out of the cabin, Bliss met eyes with Christy and mouthed one word: _Jada_.

**Confessions:**

**Christy:** **I'm working with Bliss, but still, I'm not so sure if voting off Jaders is the right thing to do…**

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

"Here, here, to two challenge victories in a row, and to Troy Mendon, who brought this victory to us!" Danny announced at the team's celebration party.

"Speech! Speech! Speech!" several of the others in the room chanted, so Troy not-so-humbly stepped forward.

"Fine, fine! I'll tell you all the story of how I met my best friend Orion Chase. This is a good story," he added. Orion grinned.

"Best friend?"

"Don't ruin the moment, Sherlock!" Troy laughed.

_*Flashback*_

_"Here, I'll be your guide to North Shore," Troy said to the new kid, Orion. "Now, where you sit in the cafeteria is crucial, because you got everybody there._

_You got your freshmen, (Christy)_

_ROTC guys, (Jason)_

_Preps, (Deacon, Tonia)_

_JV jocks, (Thunder)_

_Asian nerds, (Brooke, Eyrik)_

_Cool Asians, (Kelvin, Ren)_

_Varsity jocks, (Jeremiah)_

_Unfriendly black hotties, (Bliss)_

_Girls who eat their feelings, (Kylie)_

_Girls who don't eat anything, (Lauren)_

_Desperate wannabees, (Beatrice, Annalisia)_

_Burnouts, (Jada, Rain)_

_Sexually active band geeks, (John, Madeleine)_

_The greatest people you will ever meet, (Troy)_

_And the worst (Danny)._

Everyone stared in silence at Troy. "Um… that's not how we met…"

* * *

**Team StarKid:** Brooke, Danny, Jason, Madeleine, Orion, Ren, Troy

**Team Extraterrestrial:** Annalisia, Bliss, Christy, Eyrik, Jada, Kylie

**Eliminated:** Jeremiah, John, Lauren

**And that wraps up yet another chapter! This one took forever and a day to write, so I hope it's pleasing to everyone. Please leave your comments in a review! And which other veterans do you want to see return?**

**Brooke's return stirred up some drama, as did Danny's concussion and the apparent reformation of the Fearsome Five alliance. With nothing set in stone and the covert Underdogs alliance, will Bliss finally end up eliminated or will some miracle happen? Tune in next time to find out!**


	16. Little Do You Know

Chris grinned as Team Extraterrestrial sat at the campfire pit. Annalisia, Eyrik, Jada, and Kylie all sat on one side, while Bliss sat completely on the other. A fidgety Christy sat between the two groups.

Chris chuckled. "Man! I can't imagine a team sucking as much as you do right now. Fourth loss out of six. What is up with that!"

"Give it a rest, dickwad," Kylie growled.

Christy nodded. "Y-yeah!" she added, a bit shaky about standing up to Chris. "Stop belittling us every time we come here!"

Chris shook his head. "Guys! Wake up! I wouldn't be belittling you if you weren't here every single time!" He faced the six contestants. "This team needs to get it together!"

"When'd you become Jeff Probst?" Bliss scoffed.

Chris nearly blushed. "Me? Jeff Probst? Oh, you flatter me!" Annalisia and Eyrik exchanged nervous glances.

**Confessions:**

**Annalisia: Chris has this weird obsession with Jeff Probst, and we're going to pretend like it's been a recurring gag.**

"So what happened this time?" Chris asked. "Who messed up?"

"It was that country bastard Jeremiah!" Annalisia exclaimed, throwing up her hands. "You just can't get rid of that guy, can you!"

"Little do you know…" Chris chuckled mysteriously to himself. "Little do you know…"

Everyone looked a bit disturbed. "Well, moving on with this ceremony," Jada continued in an impersonation of Chris' voice.

"I'm not done being Probst yet!" Chris whined, stomping his foot. "Now… raise your hand if you feel like you're in danger of being voted out tonight."

Bliss was the only one to raise her hand and eyed the others nervously. "Well, it's nice you all feel safe," she added shakily. Her bravado was beginning to falter.

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: My position in the game right now hinges on Christy. I just need her vote, just that one vote…**

Chris laughed. "Seriously? All of you guys feel safe?" He pointed to Mickey. "What makes you think you're safe?"

"I guess I just don't have any enemies," she replied.

"Yeah, we're a pretty close-knit group," Christy commented.

"Not according to a few elimination ceremonies ago!" Chris announced. "Remember? The one where Jada got torn apart emotionally?"

Jada stuck her tongue out at him. "Give it a rest, McLean! We're all friends here!"

Chris shrugged. "I wouldn't be so sure. This is Total Drama, people – nobody is your friend, and everyone is your enemy." As he let that sink in, he added, "I'll go get the votes."

Kylie threw up her hands in exasperation. "There are no votes to be gotten! We speak into a confessional! What is going on!"

As Chris stood to face them, he put a jar on top of his podium. "If anyone has a McLean Brand Immunity Head and would like to use it, now would be the time."

**Confessions:**

**Kylie: He just can't quit with the _Survivor_ references! Pfft. First he makes it a jury vote and now this. We all know there are no Immunity Heads in the game, anyways!**

**Chris: Oh, the irony!**

When nobody moved, he shrugged. "Whatever," Chris replied with a wave of his hand. "Anyways, this season, if or when you're voted off, you must walk down the Dock of Shame, climb the Stairs of Loserdom, and board the Shuttle of Failures, where you will promptly be flown off of this island. As in _forever._" He let them sink it in for a few seconds.

"I'll get on with the votes." Chris smiled. "One vote Bliss. That's 1, Bliss."

"One vote Jada. That's 1 Bliss, 1 Jada."

"One vote Bliss. That's 2 Bliss, 1 Jada."

"One vote Bliss. That's 3 Bliss, 1 Jada."

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Ugh. This is so much worse than marshmallows.**

"One vote Jada. That's 3 Bliss, 2 Jada." Chris grinned at the contestants. "One vote left."

Everyone was on the edge of their seats. Jada met Bliss' eyes and mouthed, _See you later, bitch_.

Bliss mouthed back, _Try again another time_.

"One vote Jada. That's 3 Bliss, 3 Jada. We'll need a tiebreaker."

"WHAT!" Annalisia, Jada, and Kylie exclaimed at the same time. Bliss had a smug smirk on her face. Luckily, no one noticed.

Jada shook her head in exasperation. "That's impossible! Nobody even likes her!"

Bliss stood up and sassily put her hands on her hips. "Let's not be mean about it! Two people obviously like me enough to vote with me. Now, let's shake hands and may the best girl win, okay?"

Jada stared at her with her mouth agape. "You've lost your damn mind!" she exclaimed ferociously, lunging at Bliss; Eyrik, from out of nowhere, intercepted her. Eyrik then pointed to Chris, indicating that he should get the tiebreaker started.

Chris pointed over to two very large trees where a green flag with an alien's face on it perched at the very top. "For this tiebreaker, both of you must race to the top and pull out your flag! First one to get it wins the challenge and gets to stay here! Loser – Shuttle of Failures for you!"

A grumbling Jada and grinning Bliss got ready in front of their respective trees. "May the best girl win," Bliss grinned, extending her hand.

"Oh, why don't you just suck my –"

Her last word was cut off by Chris' bullhorn going off. "Climb!" he exclaimed, as Christy, Kylie, and Mickey cheered on their teammates and Eyrik watched on intently.

Both girls were making decent headway; whereas Jada was climbing traditional style, Bliss had pulled off her heels and was using them as picks to help her scale the giant woody plant.

"I wonder how this happened," Annalisia commented as they watched the two girls climb pretty evenly; Jada would get a small lead, when Bliss would edge her out by a head, when Jada would curse her out and take the lead once more. "Who voted for Jada? Who voted for Bliss?"

"It's pretty clear that you, me, and Jaders all voted for Bliss," Kylie grunted. She turned to her friend Christy. "Is there something you'd like to tell us, Christy?"

Christy put on a shocked face. "W-what! I voted for Bliss! Of course I did!"

Kylie put on an indifferent face. "We're not going to be mad if you did, Christy."

"B-but I d-didn't!" Christy exclaimed, her voice cracking. "I swear!"

Kylie turned to Annalisia. "I don't know, Mickey…"

Eyrik remained impassive. _Quite interesting circumstances_, he thought to himself.

**Confessions:**

**Annalisia: For a change, I'm actually thinking about something Chris said... 'Nobody is your friend, and everyone is your enemy.' So right now, I have no idea who to trust. **

"They're reaching the top!" Chris exclaimed, watching the climb from his night vision goggles. Everyone turned to face the trees in heated excitement.

Near the top of the foliage of their respective trees, Bliss and Jada were climbing as fast as they could. "You can't win!" Jada exclaimed. "I won't let you!"

Bliss scoffed. "You've got no say about it! Your time is up, _Jadork_!"

And with that slip in her attitude, Jada watched in shock as the Queen Bee reached up and grabbed her flag mere milliseconds before she did.

"And Bliss wins this tiebreaker!" Chris exclaimed, to many boos and jeers.

Both Bliss and Jada climbed down from their tree. Bliss grinned evilly. "Better luck next time, bitch," she muttered in her opponent's ear as she walked back to the cabins alone, heels in hand.

Jada looked completely shocked. "I… I…"

Chris thrust a lit torch into her hand and then said, "Jada, please bring me your torch." Everyone looked on as an emotionless Jada walked up to Chris, torch in hand. In the back of her mind, she was contemplating whether or not to burn Chris to the ground. Chris looked down at her. "Jada, the tribe has spoken." Pulling out some sort of instrument, he snuffed the flame on her torch. "It's time for you to go."

Jada turned around to face Annalisia, Christy, Eyrik, and Kylie. Her emotionless face was soon replaced with a resigned grin. If she was gonna go out, she was gonna go out guns blazing.

Running down the Dock of Shame, she yelled, "PEACE OUT, BITCHES! MCLEAN, YOU SUCK! FUCKING DAMN SHIT GODDAMN MOTHERFUCKER BALLS!"

Everyone laughed as Chris' face turned a dark purple color. "NO CURSING!" he exclaimed angrily. "Get back here so I can scold you!"

Jada shook her head. "Never! Give them hell for me, guys!" she called out. "I love Chef!" she exclaimed as she opened the door to the Shuttle of Failures. And as she walked in, with one last cry to Chris, she exclaimed, "RYAN SEACREST IS A BETTER HOST!" To laughs and a rousing round of applause, the Shuttle of Failures flew off into the night sky.

Chris tried to regain his composure and turned back to the four. "Team Extraterrestrial – you've got to pick it up! I've got nothing for you. Head back to camp."

Team StarKid was hanging about the cabins area. Orion and Troy had pulled the ping-pong table out from their cabin and were playing a heated game, while Maddie was skipping around, yanking Brooke by her arm, giving her the grand tour for at least the fiftieth time. Danny, Jason, and Ren sat on the cabin steps.

Danny nervously kept checking his watch and looking around. "Where are they? Why is the ceremony taking so long?"

"Nervous about your little girlfriend?" Ren chortled, with a smug grin.

"Not particularly," Danny replied without any trace of sarcasm, "But I think you should be worrying about your girlfriend, for what it's worth."

Ren fixed him with an angry glare.

"_Victory_!" Troy exclaimed as he beat Orion in yet another game. "Ha! The only one that even stood a chance at beating me is Jada! You're no match! I'm invincible!"

At that moment, Bliss walked in, heels in hand and twigs in hair. "Jada got the boot," she called out to Team StarKid.

Orion's face erupted into an almost disturbing smile. "Ha! Personal victory for me, Mendon! WOO! SHE'S GONE! SWEET BABY JESUS! Good night, guys. I'm done." He retreated into his cabin, still whooping.

"I think he's a wee bit happy," Troy commented in an exaggerated Scottish accent, and Brooke laughed.

"Bliss," Danny called over to her, "May I have a word?"

Bliss winked at him and yawned. "Actually, I'm a bit tired, Danny. I'm going to bed."

"But I'd like to talk to you," he replied impatiently."

"Then come into bed with me," Bliss replied flirtatiously, winking.

Jason and Ren wolf-whistled as Danny turned a violent shade of red. "Talk to you in the morning, then!" he called after her.

Brooke and Maddie joined the three guys; Troy went in to bed. "I can't believe such a strong competitor like Jada got voted out this early," Brooke commented.

"Well, when Jeremiah goes first, you know that nothing is predictable this time around," Ren replied, with a knowing glare at Danny. "Things are a lot more chaotic than we'd care to admit, Brooke."

Jason made to speak but was interrupted by Madeleine bursting out into song. "_And our sarcastic friend, has met her untimely end_…"

*_Flashback-Before the ceremony_*

_Bliss climbed up to Eyrik's roof. He noticed her presence and raised in eyebrow in silent question._

_Bliss gave him a charming smile. "How much do you want to get rid of Danny Peterson?_

* * *

**Well, that wraps up another elimination chapter. Jada's gone! Bet nobody saw that coming, except for the majority of the Peanut Gallery. By the by, in case you hadn't noticed, we're now officially off of our unofficial hiatus!**

**Chris was hinting at something early on in the chapter, and what he's hinting at is a major story element. Stay tuned to find out! Also, the previous chapter had gotten cut off, but if you check back now you'll see the humorous surprise ending. Awesome! Merry Chrissymas my lovlies~**

**_Votes:_**

**Annalisia: **Damn...who do I vote for...? I guess...I have to go with Bliss...the sooner she's gone, the better.

**Bliss:** This all hinges on Christy… I vote for Jada. If you backstab me, Underdog, my heels will whip several different types of pain onto you. I mean… okay, there's no saying that without sounding like a bitch.

**Christy:** I'm so torn… vote for Jada then we lose a strong teammate, vote for Bliss and I lose one of my only allies… Underdogs unite, I guess. Sorry, Jaders…

**Eyrik:** *Eyrik walks into the confessional as quiet as he always is. He contemplates over what to write before shrugging and writing a name down. He doesn't show the name as he always does, but as he puts it in the name 'Jada' can be seen.*

**Jada:** Bliss! Bliss! A million times Bliss! Thank god she's finally getting voted out this time!

**Kylie:** Especially after all the crap she's pulled lately? Oh, goodbye, Bliss.

**_Shuttle of Failures:_**

**Jada:** Fourth place last time, fourth voted out this time. Gah! But at least I went out in style. I'm really hoping Mickey will be able to pull through, because frankly she's the only person on that tribe – _team_, what have you done to me, McLean! – that I 100% trust did not vote against me. But oh well, it's a game. Orion is probably having a fiesta right now, that douchebag. But whoever it was, they got rid of me this time. And I am very, very bitter about it. Aftermath, here I come!_  
_


	17. Silly String is Power

Beatrice and Rain are shown on the couch in the middle of the Aftermath room.

"Hello mah dearies~!" Trixie said, smiling brightly.

"And welcome to our humble show~ THE AMAZING AFTERMATH!" Rain jumped on the table dramatically, confetti falling from the ceiling as he said "Aftermath". From the Peanut Gallery, Thunder rolled her eyes.

"So much for humble." she muttered, crossing her arms. Tonia nodded in agreement.

"HEY!" Rain shouted, spraying the two girls with silly string, "NO COMMENTS FROM THE PEANUT GALLERY!" Tonia and Thunder gave him menacing looks as the other two boys tried to stifle their laughter. Rain shuffled back to Trixie.

"They're scary..." in response, he punched him in the head.

"ANYWAY," she began, "It's been crazy in Camp Wawanakwa these last few days. All I see are alliances flying everywhere! But lets see what camera sees, shall we?"

"Clip 1! Countering their counters!"

"With...a lot of people."

* * *

_"So," Danny went on, "If you wanted to prove to us that you really were loyal to the Fearsome Five, you'd help blindside our musician friend, right?"_

_Jason quickly turned towards Bliss, who was nodding. She stood up and put her hands on his shoulder. "Oh, Jase! We can't have traitors among our ranks. You understand, don't you?" she asked, giving him a kiss on the cheek._

_"Sure, babe," Jason said with bravado. Turning to Danny, he asked, "What about the Ninja Nerd?"_

_"Do not tell him, at all," Danny stressed._

_"Keep it top-secret," Bliss added._

_Jason paled. "Secret?"_

_..._

_Orion sat on one of the bunk beds, strumming his guitar. Troy stood throwing some wooden ninja stars that he'd carved after Chris had confiscated his stuff again. Troy threw one at the door right as Jason opened it. "AAH!" he yelled, ducking. "Watch where you're throwing things, Ninja Nerd!"_

_As he closed the door, Troy rolled his eyes. "You're obviously just jealous of my mad skills. C'mon, admit it."_

_Orion laughed. "Where were you, brickhouse? Off in a top-secret conspiracy meeting?"_

_As the two friends laughed, Jason started sweating and laughed nervously. "A conspiracy meeting?! Haha! That's ridiculous, haha!"_

_Troy and Orion exchanged glances quickly. "Get the door," Troy commanded. Before Jason could react, Orion was blocking the door. Jason turned back to Troy, who was clutching a star in each hand. And they were sharp._

_"So, Jason, where were you?" the ninja asked._

_Before Jason could answer, Orion injected, "And we'll know if you're lying, man. You really suck at keeping secrets."_

_Jason resigned himself. There was no way he was getting out of this one. "Fine! I was with Danny and Bliss. Having a Fearsome Five meeting."_

_"I know math isn't your strong suit," Orion began sarcastically, "But even you realize that there should be more than three people at a Fearsome Five meeting, right?"_

_"They made me swear not to tell you guys, but… they want me to help them target Orion because he voted for Lauren. And they made me swear not to tell you," he added, looking at Troy, "Because you guys are close."_

_Orion and Troy exchanged another glance. "What do you think, Sherlock?" Troy asked._

_Orion grinned. "Well… they don't know that we know what they're planning!"_

_"Exactly!" Troy exclaimed. "So we can instead target them!" Facing Jason with his throwing stars, he added, "Jason. Do not tell Danny or Bliss. Okay?"_

_..._

_Danny and Bliss stood in front of Jason, who was sitting down on the bunk. "So they're countering our counter?" Bliss questioned._

_Jason sighed. "Yes! But they made me promise not to tell you guys!"_

_Danny grinned. "Oh, but here's the kicker! They don't know that we know that they know!"_

_"Which means we can counter their counter of our counter!" Bliss exclaimed gleefully._

_"Or," Jason suggested, "You guys could all make peace with each other so I won't have any secrets and can go back to knowing nothing!"_

_Danny and Bliss laughed hysterically. "Or we could just get their loser asses voted off," Bliss replied._

_..._

_"So let me get this straight," Troy started. "They don't know that we know that they know that we know about them?"_

_"And they're going to counter our counter of their counter of our counter?" Orion added._

_Jason got up and walked out. "This hurts my brain too much!" he exclaimed, and stormed off._

* * *

As Rain tried to make sense of this countering nonsense, Trixie faced the Peanut Gallery.

"Questions, thoughts, and concerns?"

Kelvin looked at his tablet, disgusted, "Bliss and Jason make me wanna throw up." Thunder shook her head unapprovingly.

"He's an idiot."

Deacon, like Rain, was trying to comprehend this ordeal.

"So...Orion and Troy are going to counter their countering or their counters to their plan?" Rain threw his hands in the air.

"All this countering made me forget what their plan _was_!" Tonia rewound the clip.

"-_you'd help blindside our musician friend, right?_" Rain fell to his knees.

"NO ORION NOOOO~!" Trixie punched him in the head again.

"Moving on..."

"Clip 2! Eyrik and Madeleine vs. Izzy!"

* * *

_Maddie was acting as a decoy, hoping to draw Izzy out, while Eyrik hid in the trees, waiting to pounce on her. Suddenly, Jason came running out of nowhere screaming, "CHEF DO NOT TOUCH ME!" He ran into a tree, fell down, got up, and ran off._

_Maddie shrugged, unconcerned for his welfare. "Here, Izzy! Maddie's got a super special surprise for you!"_

_It was then that a cage descended from the trees and covered Madeleine. "Hey! This trickery is just unfair!" yelled the crazy girl with a stomp of her foot._

_A smirking Izzy walked out into view. "All's fair in a buck-toothed beaver and a bubbly Shirley Temple!"_

_"No truer words have ever been spoken," Maddie replied, nodding her head in agreement. "Please, tell me some more!"_

_"Bubblegum! Kumquats! Goose! Tomato chips!"_

_With this momentary distraction, Eyrik was able to successfully leap from the tree and lasso her with the rope from earlier. When she tried to run away or worm herself out, Eyrik yanked on it, pulling her to the ground._

_Izzy sighed in defeat. "Argh! You guys caught me! Whatever. It's secret time! __Hidden, somewhere on the island, is a McLean Brand Immunity Head!"_

_"No way!" Madeleine gasped in shock. Turning to Eyrik, the enigma had been caught off-guard and had a similar shock-based expression on his face._

* * *

Everyone blinked once at the odd scene displayed before them.

"What's a kumquat?" Rain said finally, breaking the silence.

"A fruit." Tonia explained.

"That's not important!" Kelvin shouted, "There's an Immunity Head somewhere out there!"

"Where d'you think it is?" Deacon questioned.

"My guess would be in the kitchen." Rain snorted.

"No one's getting that thing. In the kitchen? _Chef Hatchets _kitchen? Are you sure Chris isn't trying to kill them?"

"I can't say for sure..." Trixie said, thinking about the possibility.

"Look at this guys..." Thunder paused on Eyrik's shocked face. "Dude...the most emotion he's shown...like..._ever._"

"But that isn't even the highlight of this video~!" Rain said with a grin. He rewound the the beginning, and did a frame-by-frame of Jason running into the tree. He laughed, along with his co-host and the Peanuts.

"Priceless man!" Kelvin laughed.

"CHEF! DO _NOT _TOUCH ME!" Deacon mocked. The continued to laugh. Beatrice wiped away a fake tear.

"Whew, that was funny...anywho~ next up-!"

"Clip 3! The Underdogs!"

* * *

_"Hey, Christy! Why don't you come sit with us?"_

_Christy looked around nervously, unsure if he was really talking to her. Danny beckoned her again and she came and sat down. "Um… what's up?"_

_Bliss rolled her eyes while Danny smiled at her. "Christy, I don't know if you've considered this game up to this point."_

_"What do you mean?" Christy asked, shifting slightly._

_"Well," Danny explained, "We've seen some pretty strong competitors go. It took a real coo to get rid of Jeremiah, that's for sure. We're on the same team and everything, so I was just offering the services of myself and my ally, Bliss."_

_A shocked Christy turned to Bliss who smiled very fake and large. "Yep! Danny and I are just so lost! We could use someone to help us out!"_

_Danny nodded. "Yep. So, what do you say? Unless you're working with someone else, I mean."_

_Christy smiled timidly. "Um, sure, I guess so."_

_"Now all we need is a terrible name," Bliss muttered under her breath._

_Christy heard her, however, and quickly exclaimed, "The Underdogs!"_

_As Bliss facepalmed, Danny nodded. "Sure, the Underdogs. That's us!"_

* * *

Deacon also facepalmed.

"The Underdogs? Really? That loser couldn't think on anything better?" hearing this, Rain went and sprayed him in the face with silly string.

"ENOUGH DAMN SILLY STRING!"

"THE SILLY STRING IS POWER!"

"Anyway..." Tonia zoomed in on Bliss' fake smile.

"Look at her, she looks pale."

"Apparently, it hurts her to be nice." Trixie said, crossing her arms.

"Lets hope and pray she stays like that." Kelvin said with a grin, maybe she'll explode from nice-ness."

"Kindness." Tonia corrected.

"Whatever..." Trixie sighed.

"I kinda feel bad for Lele. She's so nice...she could never say no to anyone." Thunder rolled her eyes.

"I feel no compassion for her. She's a pushover. She has to toughen up. A lot."

"I guess...anyway... Clip 4! Jason vs Mr. Kittykins~!"

* * *

_"And next up," Harold began, rubbing his sore face and fixing his glasses, "Jason!"_

_Harold held up a sheet covering what appeared to be a crate of some sort. "Crates have food," Jason rationed out loud, "And man, I like me some food. I'll take the crate, nerdy guy!"_

_Harold nodded and pulled off the sheet. It wasn't a crate – it was a carrying case for pets. And the door was open. And there was a cat inside._

_And Jason was scared of cats._

_"HELL NO!" he exclaimed loudly. Startled by the loud volumes of his voice, the cat yelped and leapt out of the case, jumping onto Jason's face and clawing his cheeks. "Help me, losers!" he screeched._

_Danny and Troy turned to each other. "I really want to help him, but he might be in cahoots with you," Troy said, laughing._

_"He might be working with you, Troy. So no chance am I aiding him," Danny agreed. They both watched Jason run off, trying – and failing – to pry the cat off of his face._

_..._

_Jason, with scars and war paint on his face, and a bandana tied around his forehead, cautiously peered his head out from behind a tree. "Here, kitty, kitty, kitty… Here, kitty, kitty, kitty…"_

_Hearing a branch snap, he abruptly turned around and there was the cat sitting calmly before him. She was a pure white cat with orange eyes and she was staring intently at the brickhouse. Jason tried slowly stepping backwards away from the cat, but accidentally stepped on a branch._

_"Oh my god," he muttered before turning around in a full sprint. Jason tripped and fell to the ground; he turned onto his back just in time to get a face full of cat claw._

_"NO!" Jason shrieked to the heavens._

* * *

"Is...he that much of an idiot...?" Thunder said, actually shocked.

"Why would he turn on his back?" Kelvin asked aloud, "It was aiming for his _face._" Deacon protectively touched his face.

"I feel for him...I'd cry if my face had so many grotesque cat scratches..." everyone but Tonia facepalmed. Rain stomped up to him and sprayed his face with silly string, then walked back to his seat on the couch.

"Pretty boy." he mumbled. Trixie snickered as she went through the clip again. She paused at one point, dying of laughter.

"LOOK! LOOK!" Jason's face seemed distorted, a long trail of saliva just shooting from his mouth.

"Alright, alright, no more! He's just...just so pathetic!"

"Clip 5, Brooke and Orion!"

* * *

_"I'd like to make a toast," Troy called out, standing on top of the ping pong table they'd moved into the cabin, "To victory, friends, and an unconscious Danny!"_

_Everyone, including Ren, found themselves laughing and joining in on the toast. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door._

_Ren, learning a complicated and strange dance from Madeleine, called out, "It's the other team!"_

_Jason, who was having a soda chugging competition with Troy, called out, "Yo, wanna get that, dude?"_

_Orion nodded, put down his drink, and opened the door._

_Standing there was a girl with several bags and a suitcase with her. She smiled at Orion. "Hey."_

_"Brooke."_

* * *

"Ohhhhh snap!" Rain said, snapping his fingers. "Bet ya didn't see _that _coming!"

"So how about it peanuts, any comments on Brooke's surprise appearance?"

"It's definitely gonna cause drama, that's for sure." Deacon said.

"Especially considering the fact that Orion is getting pretty close with that chick, Kyle or something." Thunder added.

"_Kylie._" Trixie corrected, but nodding nonetheless. "And they _have _been getting pretty comfy-cozy lately, haven't they?" The rest of them nod in agreement. Kelvin smirked suddenly.

"Totally off topic, but..." he rewound the video to Ren being taught how to dance by Maddie, "...what in the holy Hell is he doing?" they all laugh at Ren's rhythm-less dance moves.

"It looks cool when Maddie does it..." Rain says, laughing at Ren. "Oh, how lovely it is to see people you don't like making fools of themselves on national television." They all nod.

"Next clip, D.P's amnesia!"

* * *

_Danny scratched his head, confused. "Um, Troy? Why am I in this cabin? I'm not on your team."_

_Troy laughed. "Sure, sure. Remember? You and Bliss switched."_

_"Um… why?" Danny asked, growing more and more confused._

_"Because… wait, why would you think?" Troy asked, curiously._

_Danny considered it for a moment. "Well… now we've got the four strongest members of the Fearsome Five on one team. Bliss is the weakest link, so I guess it made sense to leave her unprotected."_

_Jason roused drowsily. "Fearsome Five? Danny, what are you talking about?"_

_"Our alliance? Remember?" Danny asked, laughing. "Oh, you guys are punking me or something! I must've hit my head, right? Real funny, guys."_

_Troy and Jason exchanged curious glances. Troy shrugged and grinned. "You found us out, Danny ol' boy! Fearsome Five Forever!"_

* * *

Rain crossed his arms, "Ok, that right there made _Jason _seem smart." Thunder rolled her eyes.

"He doesn't fool me for a second. He's playing them like he plays with action figures."

"Sets them on fire in the backyard when he finds out they don't actually exist?" Kelvin questioned. Everyone gave him a weird look. "No? Just me?" Rain just walks over to him, bombarding him with silly string. Kelvin glares as the painter walks back to his seat.

"Well, an act or not, this certainly is gonna stir up a lot of trouble." Tonia said. "I mean, if he _does _have amnesia, he's gonna be easier to manipulate, if not, he's gonna be harder to read and control."

"He makes me uncomfortable." Trixie said, studying his face, "He's just...so hard to read."

"And that's what makes him the best contestant out of all of them." Deacon said.

"Whatever. Moving on."

"Clip numero 7! Tiebreaker!"

"Oo~ Bliss vs. Jada!"

* * *

_Chris pointed over to two very large trees where a green flag with an alien's face on it perched at the very top. "For this tiebreaker, both of you must race to the top and pull out your flag! First one to get it wins the challenge and gets to stay here! Loser – Shuttle of Failures for you!"_

_A grumbling Jada and grinning Bliss got ready in front of their respective trees. "May the best girl win," Bliss grinned, extending her hand._

_"Oh, why don't you just suck my –"_

_Her last word was cut off by Chris' bullhorn going off. "Climb!" he exclaimed, as Christy, Kylie, and Mickey cheered on their teammates and Eyrik watched on intently._

_Both girls were making decent headway; whereas Jada was climbing traditional style, Bliss had pulled off her heels and was using them as picks to help her scale the giant woody plant._

_"They're reaching the top!" Chris exclaimed, watching the climb from his night vision goggles. Everyone turned to face the trees in heated excitement._

_Near the top of the foliage of their respective trees, Bliss and Jada were climbing as fast as they could. "You can't win!" Jada exclaimed. "I won't let you!"_

_Bliss scoffed. "You've got no say about it! Your time is up, Jadork!"_

_And with that slip in her attitude, Jada watched in shock as the Queen Bee reached up and grabbed her flag mere milliseconds before she did._

_"And Bliss wins this tiebreaker!" Chris exclaimed, to many boos and jeers._

_Both Bliss and Jada climbed down from their tree. Bliss grinned evilly. "Better luck next time, bitch," she muttered in her opponent's ear as she walked back to the cabins alone, heels in hand._

_Jada looked completely shocked. "I… I…"_

* * *

"Jada...lost to _Bliss_?!" both Rain and Kelvin exclaimed at the same time.

"Blasphemy says I!" Trixie says, thrusting her index finger in the air.

"I told you Bliss was gonna slip before the merge." Kelvin said to Deacon, who begrudgingly handed over his money.

"Somehow, I'm not surprised Bliss won." Tonia said. Rain sprayed her with silly string.

"How could you say such a thing?!"

"Well..." she said irritably, wiping the silly string off, "she's very efficient." Deacon scoffs.

"She seems like a girly girl to me."

"You're so simpleminded." Thunder said, annoyed by him. "She's just lazy."

"Yeah, she used Lauren to her advantage last year, and she's using Danny this year." Tonia continued to explain, "But at that moment, when everything is up to solely Bliss, she does what she has to do to stay in the game." Rain made a face, and went on to draw devil horns on the picture of Bliss on the screen.

"Bitch." he mumbled.

"Anywho~" Trixie said, "It's time for our loser to join us! Everyone welcome...Jada~!" Jada walked in on cue, taking a seat in the guest chair.

"JADA~!" Rain gushed, pouncing on her. "How I missededed you my lovely~" she chuckled, petting his hair.

"I missed you too Rain." he gave her a peck on the lips before going back to his seat on the sofa.

"So, Jaders, how do you feel about your tragic loss so soon in the game?" Trixie questioned.

"It feels like someone puked rainbows all over me." she said, rolling her eyes.

"Interesting..."

"Well, seriously now, it sucked donkey nuts. But honestly, I can't be surprised. _Hello, _Jeremiah was the first out, remember?"

"I see. So, who would you like to see out next?" Rain inquired.

"Well, I'd like to say Bliss, but D.P should be next to go."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Bliss thinks she has him wrapped around her pinky, but it's actually the other way around. Remove Danny from the game, and all his little minions come crumbling down with him." she looks over at the Peanut Gallery. "You agree, don't you...uh...peanuts?" Kelvin and Tonia nod in agreement, but Thunder shakes her head.

"In my opinion, I think it would be amazing to see D.P make it far, then watch him fail at the last second."

"That's pretty cruel." Rain said. She simply shrugged. Deacon crossed his arms.

"Personally, I want Jason to leave. He's a big idiot and would never make it to the finals anyway. There's no point in him staying."

"Woah, lot's of mixed emotions running through the Peanut Gallery!" Trixie said, staring at the camera. "But I wonder, out of all the people said, who will be the next to join us here? I can't wait to find out!" Rain grinned at the camera.

"See ya next time on Total Drama Aftermath!" he presses a button, causing silly string to coat them all.

"RAIN! ! ! !"


	18. Destined to Fall

**Before this chapter starts, there's something I want to clear up. The scene at the end of last chapter, where Bliss talks to Eyrik, took place _before_ the elimination ceremony instead of later that night. But I did fix that so that there isn't too much future confusion. Sorry for that lovies. Anywho~ this chapter will explain the reasoning behind Bliss' approach.**

* * *

Chris stood gleaming on the Dock of Shame. "Last time, on Total Drama Reach for the Stars! Joined by our returning veteran Justin, the two teams competed against our own previously eliminated contestants in a game of manhunt! Everyone was still reeling from Brooke's return, and Orion's feelings became complicated due to the stress of the game and his friendship with Kylie. Troy planted a surprising kiss on Christy, and there were so many flashbacks that I got a headache. Ren was initiated into the Covert Affair alliance with Eyrik and Madeleine, and everyone still believed their lie that there would be a jury vote to determine the winner, when in actuality there was a McLean Brand Immunity Head hidden somewhere in play. When Team Extraterrestrial lost _again_, Bliss ended up beating Jada in a tiebreaker challenge, and Jada became the fourth person voted off of the island. So what will happen this time on Total! Drama! Reach for the Stars!?"

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Side***

Bliss lay awake on her bed while Christy, Kylie, and Mickey were still fast asleep. She looked over and saw the empty bunk where Jada had previously resided, and grinned wickedly.

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: I knew I was in trouble, so I promised Eyrik to help him take out Danny if he votes for Jada. It was an opportunity that he just couldn't pass up on.**

**Annalisia: The cabin feels so… empty without Jada. I mean I like Christy and Kylie, but there's kind of a best-girl-friend position that's now empty.**

"Morning, beauties!" Bliss called down cheerfully, whistling a tune. "It sure is a wonderful day, isn't it!"

The other three girls groaned, upset over being woken up so early. Kylie sat up on her bunk and glared at Bliss. "I still can't get over you winning that tiebreaker."

"I just got lucky, I guess," Bliss replied with a shrug.

"Or maybe you knew you'd be going into a tie," Annalisia added as Bliss started to do her makeup, holding up a mirror. "So you sharpened your heels to help you climb that tree!"

As Mickey lunged for the heels in question, Bliss swiftly moved and grabbed them into her arms. She scoffed. "I'm hurt that you girls would think that of me! The best person for the team is still in the game. That's all that matters."

As she left the cabin, the three girls stared after her. "Oh, she definitely had this planned," Annalisia commented, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, but who'd she team up with to force that tie?" Kylie wondered aloud.

Christy chuckled timidly. "Who knows? Maybe it was Eyrik."

Both Mickey and Kylie burst out laughing. "Eyrik? Want to keep Bliss over Jada? That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard!" Mickey chortled.

Kylie ceased laughing and eyed the prankster. "Wait… are you assuming then that it was me and Christy?"

"What? No, that's not what I meant at all…"

"F-for all we know," Christy stuttered, "Maybe you wanted to vote off Jada. It's the perfect crime! She was your best friend. Nobody would've guessed!"

"That's crazy!" Mickey exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration. "Jada was the only one here I could actually talk to!"

"Hey!" both Christy and Kylie chirped at once.

"What's that supposed to mean!" Kylie exclaimed, fire in her eyes.

Annalisia rolled her eyes. "You're always bashing boys! And she's," Mickey went on, referring to Christy, "Stuttering every ten seconds!"

"Both of those p-problems have already been pretty much resolved by the author, thank you v-very much!" Christy stuttered.(ahhh good ol' breaking of the fourth wall...)

Overhearing the arguing from right outside the door, Bliss smiled in pleasure. She didn't even have to be mean to stir up some trouble! "Now, time to pay a visit to that mysterious creep, Eyrik," she muttered to herself, jovially walking over to the adjoining cabin.

"Hey, Eyrik, mind if I have a word, hun?" Bliss asked as she walked in, but stopped as soon as she saw what was going on inside.

Frozen in place, Eyrik had a rope tied to his thigh that was suspending him upside-down from the cabin roof while Maddie was standing tiptoed balancing Orion's guitar case from a ping pong racket thing or whatever they're called in her right hand. In her left hand was Ren's shirt; the boy in question was sitting cross-legged and shirtless on the ground, clutching Ms. Mittens, who looked like she was just about to reach over and claw Madeleine before Bliss had walked in.

Three sets of human eyes and one of cat eyes stared at her awkwardly. "Um, well, I see that I'm clearly interrupting something," Bliss said to no one in particular. "Please, get back to whatever it is you were doing. Don't mind me."

As she closed the door, Maddie lost her balance as the cat leapt from Ren's hands onto her; the guitar case came falling to earth but collided into Eyrik on the way down, sending the enigma spiraling from his point of suspension. "Well," Madeleine started, quickly ducking before Eyrik's body crashed into her, "I think that was a very healthy and productive exercise!"

"I seriously don't understand any of what just happened," Ren grunted.

**Confessions:**

**Ren: I've learned to just roll with whatever it is Maddie says. Keep her happy, she'll vote with me, at least that's the way I see it**.

"Anyways," Ren went on, "Now that we've gone through that ordeal, can you finally show us that damn map – ow!" he exclaimed as Eyrik's twirling body slammed into him.

Eyrik reached up and undid the knot, falling to the ground in the process. He shook himself off to stand by Ren, nodding in agreement to his statement.

Maddie eyed both of them, her eyes shifting into slits. She pulled the map out from her pocket and clutched it tightly in her arms. "NOBODY SEES THE WIZARD!" she bellowed; Ms. Mittens yelped at this sudden outburst and hid underneath one of the bunks.

Eyrik and Ren turned to look at each other, Ren raising an eyebrow. "Mads, nobody has time for that," he grunted. Seeing Mickey storm out of her cabin, he quickly added, "Speaking of things nobody has time for, I need to go." Pulling his shirt out from the floor, and with Ms. Mittens leaping into his arms, he turned to Eyrik and Madeleine and muttered, "Catch you guys later."

As he left, not even bothering to close the door behind him, Eyrik turned toward back to Maddie and extended his hand; he wanted to see the map.

Maddie flashed him a smile before suddenly leaping from her position and through the window, leaving a baffled Eyrik alone in the cabin. From outside, he heard Ren shout, "The door was fucking open, Mads!"

***Team StarKid, Girls' Cabin***

Brooke sat in her bunk reading one of her books when she heard a knock at the door. "Come in!" she called, and Orion and Troy sauntered in.

"Hello, dearest," Orion said to her with a wide grin.

"Two lovely gentlemen have arrived to escort you to breakfast," Troy added with a wide smile.

Brooke laughed and stood up, stretching. "My, what ever have I done to deserve such good service!" she exclaimed in a country damsel accent.

Orion walked up to her and pulled her in for a kiss. "Just being you," he replied.

Troy rolled his eyes. "Hello? I'm still in the room. Not even feet away. Maybe a singular foot."

Brooke pulled away and laughed again. "Sorry, Troy. But, um, could you let me have a moment with Orion? If you wouldn't mind."

"Oh, no, of course I wouldn't mind!" Troy replied sweetly. "My best friend wakes me up early to go collect his girlfriend and now I'm all by my lonesome. I won't mind. Heavens, I won't mind."

"Love you, sweetheart!" Orion called to him.

"Yeah, yeah," Troy grumbled. "I'm so telling Kylie."

"What was that?" Brooke asked him.

Troy chuckled. "I said that I was really hungry! Get your hearing checked. Now don't take too long, lovebirds," he chided as he left the cabin, closing the door behind him.

Brooke and Orion were now alone. "So, what's up, Brooke?" Orion asked his girlfriend. "Why'd you need to talk to me alone?"

"I have a surprise for you," Brooke replied, smiling softly. "Close your eyes." Orion did as he was told and found Brooke kissing him softly at first. She started to go a bit harder and pulled him over to the bed; they sat down, and she grabbed for his hand.

As she pulled his hand back to her, Orion suddenly shot up and separated them. "Um, yeah, I think we should go get some breakfast, don't you?"

Brooke looked exasperated. "But wouldn't you rather stay here for a little bit?"

"Oh," Orion replied, flustered, "You can't just leave Troy by himself! And I hear Chef is serving slop with extra salt this morning. That's your favorite, isn't it?"

"Um… no…"

"Exactly! So we need to make sure we get some! Trust me, it goes fast."

**Confessions:**

**Brooke: Um… that was certainly strange. I was just trying to spend some time with him is all. I mean, we have been away for quite a while, and I don't want us to become distant...he seemed a bit flustered...maybe I'm reading too many romance novels...**

**Orion: Sheesh, speaking of things going fast…**

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

Jason, who had been lifting weights (dumbbells that he'd brought with him), noticed Danny wake up. "Hey, dude, have you seen Ms. Mittens anywhere?"

Danny sat up on his bunk. "Jason… I just woke up… so no."

"Oh. Well, she's been gone for a few episodes, so I'm starting to get concerned."

Shrugging, Danny rose to his feet. "We'll find your cat, Jason. Don't worry. How about a game of ping pong before we head out to breakfast?"

Jason scratched his head. "Dude, I can't find the ping pong racket thing, whatever they're called… one of them is missing. It's like we were looted."

"They're called table tennis rackets," Danny explained. "And now that I take a look around, Orion's guitar case is missing too. _Did_ we get looted?"

They continued discussing whether or not someone had stolen their stuff until Bliss walked in. Seeing their alliance mate, Danny and Jason applauded.

**Confessions:**

**Jason: Man, I'm thrilled and surprised to see Bliss come back. This game just keeps confusing me. Right now I'm not even sure if I'm supposed to be thrilled that Bliss is back!**

**Danny: As good as it is – for me at least – that Bliss has returned, it leads me to wonder what arm-twisting had to go on for her to continue playing. She might've had to sell her soul to the devil… and by soul I mean our alliance, and by devil I mean her team.**

"I was up late last night waiting for you to come in," Bliss said flirtatiously as she sat down on his bunk. "I was pretty disappointed when you didn't show up."

Danny blushed a furious shade of red as Jason snickered. Choosing to ignore the comment, he told her, "You need to fill us in on what went down at that elimination ceremony."

"And considering everyone on that team hates you," Jason added, unaware of the Underdogs alliance, "I'm pretty confused. Thrilled because you're a babe. Confused because you should've been gone."

"It's all okay," Danny commented, patting Jason on the shoulder. "Don't hurt your head now, big guy." Turning back to Bliss, Danny asked, "Seriously, though, how'd you make it?"

Bliss shrugged. "It was a tie between me and Jada. I won, so here I am."

Jason and Danny both stared at her. Jason chuckled nervously. "Wait, you won in a tiebreaker against… Jada?"

"Well, yeah," Bliss replied. "So?"

"It's just… unexpected," Danny put gently.

Bliss rose slowly to her feet and glared at the two boys. "Listen, guys," she said calmly, which scared them more than if she'd been yelling, "I may not be the most sporty girl out there, but don't underestimate me. Do _not_ make that mistake."

Danny grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, sorry. But how did you manage to make a tie? Who'd you have to make promises to?"

Bliss winked at Danny. "That's for me to know, and you to worry about." She blew air kisses at the both of them before leaving the cabin.

"Man," Jason commented, "For a babe… she's pretty intimidating."

**Confessions:**

**Danny: I think we may have offended Bliss, and that is one thing I really don't want to do.**

**Bliss: Ugh! Those idiots, underestimating me. I thought Danny thought more of me… wait, that actually sounds like I'm starting to care about his opinion of me. Oh, no, what's happening to me?! Anyways, there's no need to tell Danny that I sold his soul to that silent creep. It's always helpful to have a backup. Jeez, I'm spending way too much time in here…**

***Mess Hall***

Troy sat idly in the mess hall. "Stupid best friend and his stupid girlfriend," he muttered darkly to himself. "Man, all I wanted was some company while I ate this goddamn slop…"

"Company? I'll keep you company!" Madeleine exclaimed from out of nowhere, causing Troy to jump and fall out of his chair.

Pulling himself back up, he replied, "Jesus! Maddie, you can't just go around scaring people like that!"

"You're supposed to be a ninja, though!" Maddie replied, wagging her finger. "I can't believe you let me sneak up on you like that!"

Troy grinned. "Oh, trust me, I'm the best ninja that there ever was! I can sneak up on anyone! I can sneak up on anything! Nothing gets past me!"

"Then how'd you let a girl like _meeeeeeee_," Maddie sung, "Get past a big strong ninja like _youuuuuuuu_?"

Troy scratched his head and chuckled. "Um… I was just, uh, a wee bit distracted…"

Maddie laughed wildly. "Ha! I knew you were no great ninja!"

"I am the _best_ ninja!" Troy screamed in exasperation. "The Master of Disaster! The Charmer of Snakes and Women! The Universe's Gift to Humanity!"

"_Prove it_," Maddie sung.

Troy scratched his brain for something that would conclusively prove to the girl that he was the best and greatest ninja alive. He finally thought of something and snapped his fingers. "I stole Chef's sharpest knife!" he announced proudly. "From right under his nose," Troy added, starting to brag. "Oh, that big guy never saw it coming. It was right when he was watching TV. I swiftly snuck into his kitchen and pilfered the knife, fighting off several guard dogs in the process. Oh, those dogs were hungry and vicious, but nothing was going to stop me from claiming my prize. Chef's knife is now securely in my possession, and there's no chance he'll ever figure out where it's gone!"

Maddie began giggling wildly. "Oh, _Troy Mendon_," she sung, emphasizing his name, "_Mister Chef is right behind youuuuuu~_"

A horrorstruck look crept upon Troy's face as he turned slowly around to see a furious Chef glaring down at him. "NINJA MAGGOT!" Chef bellowed, spit landing all over Troy's face. "IS THERE SOMETHING YOU'D LIKE TO TELL ME?"

Troy stared at him. Then turned and stared at Maddie. Then back to Chef. Then back to Maddie. "So maybe I'm not so hungry," he said to her with a shrug before quickly rolling out of the way as Chef tried to grab him by the neck. Troy sprang up, ran fast, opened the door and threw himself out.

Chef stayed behind, throwing his fist into the air and wagging it to the heavens. "I'LL GET THAT KNIFE BACK, NINJA MAGGOT! MARK MY WORDS!"

Maddie then thrust her own fist into the air, wagging it madly. "JOHN LENNON, I'LL FIND YOU! MARK MY WORDS!"

***Forest***

"Hey! Mickey!" Ren called out, hurrying after his girlfriend as she stormed off.

Annalisia turned around, her face an expression of rage. "Hey, Ren. What's up? How's it going?" she replied, anger in her voice.

Ren caught up to her. "Hey, what's wrong? Why are you so… angry? That's more my turf."

Mickey threw her hands up in the air. "It's these freaking girls, Ren!"

"Finally I can relate," Ren muttered to himself. "No, but what happened? Is it about Jada, or something?"

"Yes!" Mickey exclaimed loudly. "They… they accused _me_ of helping vote her off. Me! I'm her best friend!"

"Who's they?"

"Christy and Kylie," Annalisia scoffed. "You were right about Kylie, she sure is a bitch, and –"

Ren shook his head, laughing. "Nah, Mickey, I was wrong."

"No! You were right! I know how much she pisses you off, and she's all on my case about this Jada thing, and –"

Ren cut her off again. "Mickey, you're just mad. And confused, and you know what? They're all fucking confused. Don't let it get to you."

"And Christy! And especially Bliss! I can't believe any of them!"

"Mickey," Ren said more assertively, starting to get irritated, "You're saying things you don't mean right now. You gotta calm down and realize that these people – well, maybe not Bliss – are actually your friends."

**Confessions:**

**Annalisia: Is Ren actually… defending these people? It almost sounds like he's changed…**

"Ren," Annalisia laughed, "You don't even like these girls…"

"It doesn't matter if I do," Ren replied with an indifferent shrug, "You do."

"Ren," Mickey started, sounding somewhat suspicious, "You're sounding maybe kinda nice. Not cynical, or mean, or aggressive. I'm very concerned. Did you hit your head or something?"

Ren laughed emptily. "Oh, trust me. I'm still all those things. But you gave me an ultimatum, remember? Change or we're through." He looked down at the floor meekly. "And, uh," he muttered, "I can't lose you. Or, uh, be stupid. I've lost too many people. I'm not letting you be the next one."

Annalisia stared at him and all of the anger flowed out of her, quickly replaced by a cheeky grin and a slight blush. "Heh heh...really?" Ren simply rolled his eyes before pulling her into a kiss.

***Mess Hall***

Orion wandered in, a bit hurriedly, with Brooke a little behind him. Annalisia and Ren were still in the forest, and Eyrik was missing as usual. Bliss, Danny, and Jason sat together; as did Christy, Kylie, and Maddie. Orion went to go sit with the three girls but Brooke tugged at his arm.

"Maybe we could sit together? Alone?" she asked him with a smile.

Orion grinned. "Uh, yeah, of course Brookeworm." Looking around, he asked confusedly, "Where's Troy?"

"I don't see him," Brooke replied. They took a table for two, sitting across from each other. Brooke sighed and looked at Orion. "Hey, um, are you okay? If something happened in the cabin that you were uncomfortable with… you should be able to tell me."

Orion laughed a bit forcedly. "Oh, no! Of course not! Nothing like that! I just really want that slop with extra pepper!"

"You said it was extra salt before…"

"Yeah, salt! That's what I said! Now let's go get some of that," Orion said quickly, pulling Brooke up to go get food from Chef.

"A moment, Orion?" Danny called out from his table.

Orion and Brooke locked eyes. "I'll pick you up some," Brooke told her boyfriend, giving him a light kiss. "Don't be long." she added with a sweet smile.

"Trust me, I don't _want_ to be long," Orion whispered into her ear, and she laughed. He walked over and pulled up a chair next to Bliss; Kylie watched them from the corner of her eye. "What's up, Danny boy?"

"We have some business to discuss," Danny told him, putting down his newspaper. Taking a quick sip from his orange juice, he went on. "Now, the Fearsome Five has eliminated some of our major targets – namely, Jada and Lauren."

"But," Bliss purred, "Danny feels like it's time to refocus our efforts. On, specifically, Eyrik and Angry Ren."

**Confessions:**

**Danny: I'm playing this amnesia thing as best as I can. And if I can convince Oreo and Troy to vote out Ren and Eyrik, that'd be great. Both of them are coming after me. Hopefully, this alliance will pull through for me. I am still a bit worried about that concussion, however…**

Orion locked eyes from across the table with Jason.

**Confessions:**

**Jason: Man, I'm a bit worried now. Danny's amnesia means he's not angry with me, and he doesn't want me to pick sides anymore, but Angry Ren kinda scares me! And plus, there's the Guys' Alliance. My brain is starting to hurt again…**

"Whatever you want, D.P," Orion said with a shrug. "We're in this alliance together." He met Danny's eyes directly and added, "We stick together, right? No blindsides or double-crosses. You got me?"

Danny gave him his most charming smile. "Oh, of course not, Orion. It's all for one and one for all, here." He extended a hand to Orion and the two boys had a firm handshake.

"Can I tell Brooke about this?" he asked before getting up. "I promised her no secrets. And correct me if I'm wrong, but a fearsome alliance might qualify as a secret."

Danny laughed, but it was Jason who beat him to the punch. "No way, man!" Jason exclaimed. Lowering his voice when Christy turned around to listen in, he added, "Don't trust that loser bookworm with our secrets! We're a Fearsome Five. Stick to it, music boy."

"Oh, Jason, my how I love my conversations with you," Orion replied with a dapper smile before going back to his table, where Brooke had just returned.

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Jason, bluntly, has all the tact of a blunt rock. By the end of this show, I am going to hit him upside the head with one.**

"Jason, sweetie," Bliss purred, "There's definitely a more polite way to go about things. Why don't you let me and Danny do the talking, for now at least?"

Jason rolled his eyes. "Whatever, but I'm sure Orion trusts me a whole lot more than you guys do."

Bliss meant to inquire about that comment but Danny silently shook his head. _Now's not the time_, he seemed to tell her.

_Whether he knows it or not_, Danny thought to himself, _Jason may prove to be just what I need to take out Orion._

"What was that all about?" Brooke asked Orion as the musician began to bite into his slop. "By the way, Chef gave you _extra_-extra salt. What's that all about?"

"Me and him are buddies now," Orion replied with a shrug as Annalisia and Ren walked in. "And oh, nothing. Danny just wanted some help on the crosswords. Humble as he is, the guy knows nothing about music."

"It seemed a bit more serious than that," Brooke started. She was going to push the subject, Orion could tell.

"It really wasn't," Orion replied. _Crap, secrets already_, he angrily told himself; he wanted to spill the beans to his girlfriend but quickly bit his tongue. "Anyways, even if it was, I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him. Jason? That's a trustworthy guy. But not so much Danny."

Brooke stared agape at him. "But weren't you guys friends last season?"

Orion shrugged. "Things change," was his simple answer.

Over at Kylie's table, Christy was nervous. "I wonder what that was all about," she muttered to the two girls.

"Yeah, me too," Kylie whispered back. "If Jason _and_ Bliss are involved, it must be trouble!" She caught Orion's eye and he waved to her; she waved back but awkwardly looked away when Brooke turned to see.

**Confessions:**

**Christy: There's the Underdogs alliance I have with Bliss and Danny, and I trust them. Danny's nice and Bliss is… well, at least she's _acting_ nice. But it never hurts to have friends…**

"Maybe," Christy began, hushed, "We should form a Girls' Alliance!"

"A GIRL'S –" Maddie suddenly yelled, surprised; Kylie, who was sitting next to her, quickly cuffed her hands over the girl's mouth.

"Yes, a Girls' Alliance," Kylie, irritated, whispered harshly. "And if we wanted to broadcast our plans, we'd speak into a bullhorn!"

"Bullhorn?" Maddie inquired. Pulling out Chris' bullhorn, she turned it on and said, "Okay, now what?"

Christy laughed at this and Kylie yanked the bullhorn from Maddie's hands. "MADDIE!" she whispered sharply.

"KYLIE!" Maddie whispered back, unaware of Kylie's irritation.

Facepalming, Kylie said, "Well, this is your thing, Christy. What do you have in mind?"

"Voting out the strong guys?" Christy suggested. "Or girls? Or maybe just sticking together. It doesn't hurt to have friends."

"It certainly doesn't," Kylie replied, looking over at Orion. She nodded. "I'm in if you guys are."

"I'm in too," Christy replied. "Maddie?"

**Confessions:**

**Madeleine: _Oh, alliances make me happy, I'm feeling quite happy, I want a corn dog~_ I'll stick to my main alliance with Silent Eyrik and Angry Ren, but it never hurts to have a side deal!**

"I'm in too," she whispered; all three girls put their hands in together as Chris, holding a leash, and Rosa, looking appalled, walked in.

"Hello there, kiddies! I've got some big news for all of you!" Chris announced as he walked in, quickly taking a head count. "Now, who wants to hear it?"

"What's on the leash, Chris?" Annalisia called out.

Rosa groaned. "Oh, show them, Chris…"

Grinning evilly, Chris pulled on the leash and Troy, dressed in a dog costume, walked in. The entire mess hall burst out in laughing except for Christy, who looked sympathetic. "Little Troy over here was found taking a nap in broad daylight –"

"You drugged him with chloroform!" Rosa exclaimed in disgust. "It was cruel! And then you put him in this dog costume! I'm just appalled!"

Chris shrugged. "Details, details. Now, before I explain why Troy is dressed up like a dog, has anyone seen Eyrik?"

In response, Eyrik dropped down from the ceiling and landed perfectly on his feet. He nodded at Chris.

"Well, there he is," Chris commented, answering his own question. "Now, the reason Troy over here is dressed up like a dog is to explain the theme for this next challenge."

"You dressed him up like a dog just to explain the theme of the challenge?" Orion called out, shocked. After a few moments of consideration, he added, "That's actually kinda funny."

Troy gave him the middle finger and shouted, "Asshole!"

"I love you, Troy!"

"Now," Rosa interrupted, "The theme of this challenge is being leashed! In a space themed obstacle course," she went on, "We'll have two teams of two, and each team will he tethered to each other, like through a leash." She gestured to Troy. "The first team will collect a bag of puzzle pieces, then tag the other team to go. When that team collects their bag of puzzle pieces, you'll pass them off to the last team of two, which will use the puzzle pieces to construct a big spaceship puzzle. The first team to complete this puzzle wins!"

"Sounds real exciting," Jason called out, being a jerk. Some of the others laughed.

"Wait a minute," Christy called out.

Troy grinned. "Finally! Someone to complain about the inhumanity of drugging someone and then putting them in a dog costume!"

Christy nervously shook her head. "Um… not really. Actually, for this challenge, it'll be impossible to actually do. Team StarKid has 7 members, but Team Extraterrestrial only has 5. And you apparently need 6 members to complete the challenge, so…"

Chris snapped his fingers. "Oh, snap! Christy, you're on fire!" He grinned to everyone. "As of this official moment, the bottom-swapping rule is officially _abolished_. That's right! No more trading teams for you guys!"

This news was met with mild conversation. But Chris wasn't done yet. "I'm not done yet! Chris exclaimed. "We're also swapping teams, permanently! Chef, take it away!"

Chef Hatchet sauntered out from the kitchen holding a bowl full of eggs. "Now _maggots_," he annunciated, "These took me _forever_ to make! So don't waste them all willy-nilly!"

Walking around, he handed an egg out to everyone. "Protein," Jason moaned, "Can I eat this?"

"Super Incredibly Attractive Maggot, you can not eat those!" Chef exclaimed. Jason paled. "Now, you need to smash open your egg. Each one will release a color. If your egg is purple, you will step over to my right and join Team StarKid. If your egg is green, you will step over to my left and join Team Extraterrestrial. Got it? GO!"

In the next minute, covered in purple, the new Team StarKid stood as Bliss, Eyrik, Kylie, Madeleine, Orion, and Ren.

Covered in green, the new Team Extraterrestrial stood as Annalisia, Brooke, Christy, Danny, Jason, and Troy, off of the leash but still in a dog costume.

**Confessions:**

**Ren: Hey, this is pretty good. Sure it sucks to be with Bliss, but I've got Eyrik and Mads. Hell, I'm good with having Orion too. This could work.**

**Orion: No more Troy? No more Brooke? My only real ally on my team is Bliss. Oh, the joy… But at least I'll have Kylie to talk to.**

**Annalisia: Things could be worse, I guess. I've got a pretty solid physical team. I would've loved to be with Ren, though…**

**Danny: Troy and Jason? I can work with this. And Orion will probably have Brooke protect me. And Christy is part of the Underdogs. So I can vote off Annalisia uninterrupted. And the best part is that she'll never see it coming! Mwahahaha! I mean… It'll suck having to vote someone out. But that's the game. Wait...did I just laugh maniacally...? Oh God...this concussion is bad...**

Chris checked his watch and shrugged. "New teams! I'm giving you guys fifteen minutes to go take your bags and switch cabins. Meet in front of the Space Headquarters when I say so, or you're eliminated!"

***Team StarKid, Boys' Cabin***

Danny and Jason had moved out rather quickly; Ren, who was staying in the cabin, felt no need to hang around, and Eyrik had not yet arrived. That left Orion and Troy alone in the cabin.

They sat together on Troy's bunk, his bag packed next to him. "Man," Orion started, "We've had some good times in here."

Troy nodded. "Playing ping pong… discussing strategy… you smacking my head… I'm going to have a bruise there by the end of the season, mind you."

Orion laughed. "Man… it's gonna suck not being on the same team anymore."

"Yeah, but remember," Troy started, "Maybe not the same team. But still best friends."

"Of course. Promise not to let competition drive us apart?"

"I will promise you no such thing, but I will ensure you that Grand Ninja Troy will try his hardest."

The two rose to their feet. "Hug me, brotha?" Orion asked.

Troy grinned. "Hug me, brotha!" Instead of a bro hug, however, Troy tripped and fell down, toppling into Orion, and both ended up on the ground, their faces inches away from each other.

It was this moment that Eyrik decided to walk into the cabin. He stared over at the scene before calmly closing the door and backing out.

"DON'T TELL BROOKE!" Orion exclaimed, getting a laughing Troy off of him.

***Team Extraterrestrial, Girls' Cabin***

"Goodbye, Team Extraterrestrial!" Bliss exclaimed gleefully as she hurriedly packed her bags and rushed out of the cabin.

Annalisia rolled her eyes. "She didn't even say goodbye to us..."

Kylie and Christy both laughed. Kylie spoke up. "Well… fifteen minute deadline, you know. It's been fun, girls." She hugged Annalisia, and then walked over to Christy.

"Catch you for dinner?" Kylie asked.

Christy laughed. "Of course!" The two girls hugged and Christy whispered into her ear, "Don't pull anything!"

"Whatever do you mean?" Kylie asked.

Brooke then walked in, smiling. "Hey, guys! It's awesome to join the team!"

"It's great to have you!" Mickey said, welcoming her friend.

Christy raised a knowing eyebrow at Kylie, who smiled and said, "See you later, guys!"

**Confessions:**

**Brooke: I don't know what's going on, but Orion's been acting weird, and he and Kylie seem to be pretty close… I hope it isn't what I fear…**

**Kylie: Christy has this weird idea that I like Orion. Crazy, right? Hehe…**

***Space Headquarters***

Rosa stood, smiling, as the twelve remaining contestants stood in front of her. "Is everyone ready for today's challenge?" she asked perkily. Nobody made a sound.

Chris then opened the door and grinned. "Is everyone ready for today's challenge?" he asked perkily, and everyone whooped and cheered.

As they filed in the Headquarters behind Chris, Rosa rolled her eyes. "Every freaking time…" she muttered.

"For what it's worth," Danny commented as he passed by her, "I think that you're a _much_ better host than Chris is."

"Why, thank you, Danny!" Rosa replied with a smile as Chris led them past the Anti-Gravity Chamber and into the same room where they'd played alien laser tag.

Instead of a giant maze, this time there was a big obstacle course: from the start, there was a climbing wall, followed by a balance beam with a bag of puzzle pieces hanging over the side, and after that there was a steep incline, a second climbing wall with a bag of puzzle pieces at the top, and a spot full of wooden poles to navigate. At the very end, there was an outline of a spaceship. There was two duplicate courses right next to each other, one for Team Extraterrestrial, and one for Team StarKid.

Chris grinned. "All right, tweensters! As you can see, this is the obstacle course you'll have to make your way through, and it's even funnier because you'll be leashed to someone else – rope tied around your waists linking you together! And for more fun, if you fall off at any stage of the course, you need to go back to the start of that particular stage."

"And here to demonstrate," Chris went on, after putting a napkin to Orion's face so he'd fall to the ground unconscious, "Is our Total Drama Classic Competitor – Courtney!"

Courtney walked into the room to boos and hisses from the others. She put her hands on her hips and glared at them. "Why are you booing and hissing _me_?! Gwen's the one who stole _my_ boyfriend! I am a CIT! I should've won Total Drama Action! Harold cheated me out in Total Drama Island! I was unfairly eliminated in Total Drama World Tour! It should be _me_ playing this game, not you losers!"

Somebody threw a shoe at her and Courtney shrieked. "Who threw the shoe!" When nobody answered, she pointed to Troy and said, "I can clearly see that you are missing a shoe!"

"Maybe that's just how I accessorize!" Troy shot back sassily.

Courtney rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Chris, what do you want me to do? My lawyers tried to find a loophole, but your legal team has definitely improved. I'm impressed."

Chris yawned. "Well, at first I was going to make you run through this course and throw stuff at you, but since you've bored me and somebody already threw something at you," he replied, bumping fists with Troy, "I think you can go now."

Courtney shrieked again. "_Leave_?! I just got here! I haven't even gotten to sing! How dare you not allow me to sing! _Gwen's a boyfriend stealer~_" she sung, with Maddie starting to harmonize.

Chris glared at her. Pulling out his phone, he made a quick call. "Yeah, Competitor Removal Service? We require your presence."

Out of nowhere, Izzy dropped down from the ceiling on a rope, shot Courtney with a tranquilizer dart, tied her up, and nodded at Chris. "Anytime you request my assistance, _sir_!" she exclaimed. With a wink at Eyrik and Madeleine, she threw Courtney over her shoulder and tugged on the rope, starting to ascend.

"Man, I love this show!" Chris exclaimed, rubbing his hands manically.

Everyone stared at him uncomfortably "So," Rosa added, taking over, "We'll give you guys a few minutes to strategize and then we'll begin!"

***A few minutes to strategize later***

Bliss and Orion were tied together for Team StarKid; for Team Extraterrestrial, it was Annalisia and Danny.

**Confessions:**

**Orion: Bliss isn't exactly our most physical player, so we had to give her something easy to do.**

"Ready, set…" Chris announced. "GO!"

Both duos broke out in a heated run. "Keep up!" Orion shouted at Bliss when D.P and Mickey began to take a lead.

"I'm trying!" Bliss replied; Orion ran harder and tugged on the rope leashing them together to keep her moving.

Annalisia and Danny had reached the climbing wall with a small lead. "We've got this!" Mickey cheered as she made her way up.

"Don't jinx it," Danny commented as he began his ascent; Bliss and Orion still hadn't made it to the wall yet. As if on cue, Danny lost his balance on the wall and fell off; being leashed together, Mickey came falling down too, and as they picked themselves up Bliss and Orion had finally reached the wall.

"I'll go first," Orion suggested, "And I'll help pull you over the top. Okay?"

Bliss nodded. "I'm trusting you. I've been to elimination three times in a row. I am _not_ going back."

Orion grinned as he quickly ascended the wall; Danny had taken over the front position from Mickey and both boys were evenly matched. Upon reaching the top, Orion tugged on the rope to help Bliss up, but Mickey was right behind Danny. The two leapt right off the wall and hurried over to the balance beam.

Bliss almost slipped, but Orion reached out a hand and caught her, and the two began to climb down the opposite side of the wall; Danny and Mickey were taking a bigger lead.

"Thanks for that," Bliss grunted as they ran for the beam.

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: Maybe mister musician isn't as bad as I thought he was…**

**Annalisia: Maybe Danny isn't as bad as I thought he was…**

"We can definitely do this," Danny called back to Mickey as he started to cross the beam.

"Take your time!" Mickey called out suddenly. Looking behind her, she added, "There's no need to rush things and fall off. We've got a big lead."

"Good point," Danny called back.

Mickey smiled. "You know, I had this impression that you were this ruthless, soulless guy. You actually seem kinda normal, now that I'm talking to you."

Danny laughed. "The game brings out the worst in us, I guess." The two, having taken their time, reached the bag of puzzle pieces at the same time that Bliss and Orion started crossing the beam. Both Annalisia and Danny reached for the bag at the same time, however, and they bumped heads; losing their balance, they tumbled off of the beam and into the cargo net below, now having to hurry back to the start.

Orion took charge as he and Bliss hurried across the balance beam. Bliss reached down, made quick work of the knot, took the bag in her hands, and let Orion lift her over his shoulder; the musician nimbly made his way across the beam and Bliss tossed the bag to the waiting Madeleine and Ren, who headed towards the incline.

"Nice working with you," Orion told Bliss with a slight grin as he set her down.

Bliss grinned sweetly back, holding back a gag. "Nice working with you, too."

Jason and Troy started fidgeting, waiting for Annalisia and Danny. "Hurry up!" Jason yelled impatiently; the duo fell off once again before even reaching the bag. "Come on! They're getting a huge lead!"

"Hear that? We're getting a huge lead," Ren commented as he followed Madeleine, and they raced straight up the incline. "Third victory in a row sounds pretty good, doesn't it, Mads?"

"Things always taste good when sprinkled with victory!" Madeleine yelled wildly as she and Ren hurried towards the second, and bigger, climbing wall.

Annalisia and Danny reached the bag of puzzle pieces once again; this time, Danny bent down and untied them and merely tossed them to Troy, yelling, "GO!"

"These fucking assholes!" Jason yelled as he and Troy tried to gain some ground on the other team. "We're going to lose because of them!"

"And they said being tied to you wouldn't be fun!" Troy replied, the bag in his hands, as he took the lead, running up the incline nimbly; Jason, however, was unfortunately not prepared for it to be so steep and lost his balance, hitting the ground hard and rolling back down. Troy attempted to latch on to something, but there was nothing to latch on to, and he too rolled back to the base of the incline.

Madeleine and Ren were now halfway to the top of the climbing wall. Ren peered back and snickered. "Mads! It's not even a race anymore!"

**Confessions:**

**Ren: I didn't mean to be such a jerk about it – okay, maybe I did – but we were just slaughtering them.**

**Jason: Alright, I was pissed. Very, very pissed. At Danny and Mickey, at myself. We're getting destroyed.**

Chris sat on a beach chair, sipping a fruity drink an intern served up to him, as Rosa paid attention to the challenge. "You'd think Team Extraterrestrial would have such an advantage," she said to her uncle, "Being pretty physically fit for the most part. But it looks like Team StarKid is just annihilating them."

"Blah blah blah," Chris whined, "I don't really care. I hate all of these kids." He handed her his empty cup and said, "Now, please go have Chef cook up another for me."

Rosa stared at him. "I'm not your assistant!" she exclaimed sassily. "And how can you say that you hate these kids! You're their host! Don't you care about them _a little bit_?!"

Chris shrugged. "Um, nope, not really. I like Danny a little bit, he's good television. And Madeleine is just so entertaining. But besides that, not so much."

"WE CAN HEAR YOU, MCLEAN!" Mickey exclaimed as she, Bliss, and Orion glared at their host.

"AND THANK YOU!" Danny yelled over. The three then glared at him, and he grinned sheepishly.

Back at the incline, Troy had come up with a plan. "How's your throwing arm?" he asked Jason, who appeared very confused by this question.

From the top of the climbing wall, Ren was struggling to untie the knot as Maddie was looking out at the rest of the course with a telescope she may or may not have stolen from Eyrik. "Argh, matey!" she exclaimed as she watched Jason toss Troy to the top of the incline; Troy then helped pull Jason up the incline by steadying him. "Them other contestants be gaining on us, and rapidly, too!"

Ren shrugged indifferently as he finally undid the knot and picked up their second bag; he now carried one in each hand. "Doesn't matter. Those brain-dead egotists won't be able to catch up." Peering down the large wall, he added, "But how are we getting down this wall if I have a bag in each hand?"

Maddie smiled mischievously and Ren violently shook his head. "NO, Mads. Absolutely no way. We're seriously way too high up."

Totally ignoring him, Maddie leapt off the wall anyways, pulling Ren along with her. While she did some sort of roll to avoid hurting herself, Ren landed awkwardly and there was a sickening popping sound.

Jason and Troy finally reached the climbing wall. "Man, inclines may be a bitch," Jason commented.

"But nothing's easier than climbing a wall!" Troy finished for him, and the two started racing up side by side. "I think we may be gaining on them," Troy added, and Jason grunted in pleasure.

"If we're gonna take the lead from anyone, it's gonna be Angry Ren and Crazy Maddie," Jason replied.

"My knee!" Ren yelped as he limped along, following Madeleine. "That fall really banged up my knee, Mads!"

Maddie continued at a hurried pace as they made their way to the thicket of wooden poles before an indifferent look crossed her face. "Renny boy! We have such a big lead! We can't blow it now!"

"Mads, my knee isn't exactly going to feel better just because we have a lead," Ren commented cynically. "Just take the bags in your hand, and let me take the lead."

Maddie did as she was told and Ren got down on the ground; Maddie was about to protest, until he picked himself up by his hands. Now walking on his hands, he took the lead. "Keep up!" he shouted, annoyed.

**Confessions:**

**Madeleine: Renny boy can walk on his hands! My oh my, who ever knew!**

Jason and Troy reached the top of the climbing wall; Madeleine and Ren were still navigating their way through the thicket. "Hurry up with that damn knot!" Jason exclaimed, eager to be able to make a come-from-behind victory.

"I'm trying! You can't rush a ninja!" Troy called, but faster than Jason's eye could see Troy undid the knot. "Now let's get down this freaking wall and win this damn challenge!"

"Amen to that!" Jason agreed as he took the bag and they began making their way down the wall. On Team StarKid's side, however, Ren lead Maddie out of the thicket; she tossed both bags of puzzle pieces to Eyrik and Kylie. Each caught one and quickly dumped it out.

"Let's do this!" Kylie exclaimed, and Eyrik nodded. They quickly put several pieces together, but there was still a huge amount to go.

"RUN!" Jason shouted as he and Troy hurried to pick up the pace. Eyrik and Kylie put several more pieces in place as Troy expertly navigated his way through the thicket, Jason right behind him, and in record time Jason and Troy respectively tossed their bag to Christy and Brooke.

"We're still in this!" Brooke exclaimed as they dumped the pieces and went to work.

With their huge advantage, Kylie felt comfortable that they'd be able to pull off a win. "Hey, wait," she said suddenly as Eyrik placed a piece, "I don't think it goes there. I think it goes over here," she added, pointing.

Eyrik shook his head, as if to say, _No, it goes here._

Kylie grilled him with her eyes before shrugging. "Alright, sure. I trust you with a puzzle, Eyrik."

Brooke and Christy were making quick work of their puzzle, however; despite how badly they'd previously been loosing, they were closing the gap, putting piece after piece after piece. "We can do this!" Brooke shouted encouragingly as Christy smiled.

"We're not out of it yet," she agreed.

Eyrik and Kylie were starting to fall out of it quickly. "Okay, we need a piece that goes there, but I can't find it," Kylie said. "And this whole section, we messed up. We need to move faster!"

Eyrik nodded and quickly began reassembling the distorted section when Kylie stomped her foot. "Eyrik! It's that one piece! I _told_ you it doesn't go there!" she exclaimed, taking it out; that piece had lead to multiple more infractions.

In response, Eyrik pointed at several pieces Kylie had placed, signaling to her that they were in the wrong spot as well. "Crap!" Kylie yelled loudly, taking those pieces out and rushing to try and make things right.

All the while, Brooke and Christy were working more cohesively, making more and more progress; instead of trying to fill the puzzle in by sections, they'd worked with the borders first before moving to the inside. Now, Christy was handing Brooke pieces that Brooke would place, a strategy that was giving them a distinctive edge.

"Eyrik!" Kylie shouted. "None of those go together! Quick, we need to come up with something fast!"

Eyrik let out a small sigh of frustration; while his face remained impassive, his hands began shaking nervously and he misplaced several more pieces. He wasn't good at puzzles.

"Here, just hand me the pieces," Kylie suggested a bit more gently. Despite falling behind, they weren't out of it entirely; they could still win this if they were acting a bit more cohesive. Eyrik nodded, and by handing Kylie pieces and taking a step back, he was able to see the puzzle a bit more clearly. Tapping Kylie on the shoulder, he quickly pointed out to her where several more pieces could fit in. Kylie grinned. "We're back in this!"

Brooke and Christy weren't slowing down, however. There were only three spots left. Christy kept handing Brooke pieces, but when they were down to the last one, the girls met eyes; Christy had no more pieces. "Where's the last one?" Brooke called out in disbelief; they'd come so far only to lose now?

"It's got to be here somewhere!" Christy yelled out, and the girls quickly went to searching for it.

Meanwhile, Eyrik and Kylie were picking up the pace incredibly rapidly. Eyrik was the director, and Kylie was fulfilling his visions; he pointed things out to her, and with her steady hands and speed she filled them in. They were catching up to Brooke and Christy now. Only four pieces left…

"I FOUND IT!" Christy yelled in excitement. She quickly tossed it over to Brooke, who was closer to the puzzle. Kylie and Eyrik only had two pieces left. Now one… who was going to get there first?

Brooke charged and shoved the last piece into place and yelled, "WE HAVE IT!" just seconds before Kylie shouted, "WE FINISHED!"

Chris rose from his chair, looking bored, and walked over to Brooke and Christy. Examining their puzzle closely, he shrugged. "Well, sorry Team Extraterrestrial…"

Everyone collectively took in their breath.

Chris went on, "It looks like you've… won! Team Extraterrestrial, in a true underdog story, has taken this victory!"

Annalisia, Danny, Jason, and Troy, whooping, ran towards Brooke and Christy and pulled them into a group hug, while Team StarKid looked crestfallen. Ren, in particular, was noticeably angry, and he hobbled over to the puzzle and knocked it to the ground, yelling in frustration.

"We were so damn close to…" he muttered.

Chris grinned widely with Rosa by his side. "Well, tweens, one of you will be voted off soon! See you guys at the campfire ceremony tonight!"

***Team StarKid, Girls' Cabin***

"Well, that certainly sucked," Bliss commented bitterly.

"Oh no, I thought it was so amazing that we got our asses handed to us after blowing a huge lead," Orion replied sarcastically.

**Confessions:**

**Bliss: This is going to be my fourth consecutive time attending a campfire ceremony. Boy, isn't this fucking amazing!**

"I don't even know what happened," Ren grunted, "To be honest. We had such a big lead. How do you just blow something like that?" he added with a glare to Eyrik and Kylie.

Kylie shrugged. "We almost had it, though. It was close. Brooke and Christy are two smart girls, and if anyone was going to beat us in a puzzle it was going to be them. Go figure."

Ren shrugged. After the challenge, he'd visited Nurse Chef at the infirmary. After a heated screaming match and an awkward encounter with a sponge bath, Ren's knee had been highly bandaged and he had a crutch. "I'm just saying it's time to point blame. And I know what you're all thinking, vote off the injured guy."

"We'll definitely keep you around for your bright personality," Orion laughed, patting him on the shoulder. "But I don't think our team will be able to just vote someone out as easily as that."

"Some of us _are_ pretty shallow," Kylie commented, with a direct glare at Bliss. "Maybe the easy way out is what we need."

Madeleine turned sheepishly to Ren. "It's going to be a tough vote. Don't vote Ren out, okay? It's not his fault he hurt his knee."

"It most certainly is not," Ren agreed, "But it shouldn't be you getting voted out either, Mads. We need you." Ren met eyes with Eyrik, as if to say, _We need her_. "At the very least, you're the only joyful one on the team." Eyrik nodded in agreement.

"We need to stop covering for everyone, guys," Orion pointed out. "Someone's getting voted out tonight, like it or not." He met eyes with Bliss, and she shrugged. "I think that's all we're getting out of this meeting. I'm going to go get some food."

"Me, too," both Bliss and Kylie said at the same time. Kylie awkwardly blushed. "Or maybe not. I think I'll just go down to the beach or something. Relax."

The three walked out of the cabin, leaving Eyrik, Maddie, and Ren alone.

"Covert Affair meeting, I guess," Ren suggested cynically. He pointed his crutch at Eyrik. "Listen, man, I'm thoroughly pissed that you bombed in the puzzle. But we're in an alliance, so hey, what's done is done. Who do we vote out?"

"Bliss?" Maddie suggested. "It seems like an easy vote, fellas. Lickity split, and she's gone. Nobody likes her, anyways."

Eyrik remembered the pact he'd made with Bliss, however; he wasn't entirely sure if he could trust her or not, but he didn't want to lose an ally like her, someone so close to Danny, so quickly. Eyrik shook his head.

"Kylie, then?" Ren grunted. "She's started to grow on me, don't get me wrong, but someone's gotta get voted out."

Eyrik remembered that he also had a pact with Kylie, one they'd made quite some time ago, to vote out Jason. Eyrik shook his head once again.

"You don't want to vote out Orion, then?" Ren asked darkly. Maddie gasped; she hadn't expected this. Ren contemplated it for a second and added, "He's most certainly a threat. I think he's definitely someone to consider."

Eyrik didn't necessarily want to vote out Orion either, but between Bliss, Kylie, and Orion, the musician was the only one the enigma wasn't specifically tied to. Without deciding for himself what he was set on doing, he nodded half-heartedly.

Maddie viewed Orion as a friend, and decided to try and spare him. "He's an asset. Why not Bliss? She's not as physical as the rest of us."

"But Bliss is smart," Ren threw out. "If we're going to have to do another puzzle, she's somebody I'd rely on. Why not Kylie, though?"

Maddie viewed Kylie as a friend as well, especially after having formed a girls' alliance with her in the morning. "Kylie's smart too," Maddie suggested. "All three of them are smart." Maddie lay down on one of the bunks. "This will not be an easy vote."

"I'm hungry," Ren grunted suddenly. "I'm getting food. You two, do whatever you want, but I think we can promise to vote out Orion?"

"Let's promise to vote out Bliss instead," Maddie called out.

Ren rolled his eyes. "Promise to vote out Orion _or_ Bliss?"

Maddie and Eyrik both nodded in agreement, but all three of them knew that there was nothing definite about these plans.

***Mess Hall***

"It seems like an easy vote, right?" Bliss asked Orion, biting into a sandwich. "You and me, you can probably get Kylie on our side, I think I can bring Eyrik with us. Four votes against Angry Ren, and that's that, then."

Orion eyed her suspiciously. "What do you mean, you think you can bring Eyrik with you?"

"I've got excellent people skills?"

"Don't think I've forgotten all about you and that coo to vote out me and Troy," the musician brought up darkly. "Sure, you and I worked well today, and we may be in an alliance in name, but I don't trust you. You haven't given me reason to. And I certainly don't buy that you just woke up one morning and decided to stop being a bitch. Tell me why I shouldn't vote _you_ out tonight."

Bliss grinned. This conversation was now getting fun for her. "Want to try and vote me out? Fine. This will be my fourth time in a row at elimination, and my fifth overall. I've survived every time. You want to try and get rid of me? Go ahead, sweetie. And I know you and I aren't exactly close. It was you and Troy against me and Danny, and Jason was left in the middle. I've got no real reason to trust _you _either." An awkward silence fell over them. "But I need you," Bliss muttered.

Orion grinned. "What was that? What'd you say?"

"I need you!" Bliss exclaimed. "We don't trust each other, but I need you. Hell, we need each other. The Fearsome Five was destined to fall from the moment it was formed, but I don't think now's the time for that. We need each other to stay alive. We're both being targeted, we know that."

Orion sighed. "I hate to admit it but… you're right. If you want to vote out Ren… why not?"

Bliss shook her head, a twinkle in her eye. "No, I changed my mind. I was thinking, perhaps voting out Kylie instead." Orion's eyes widened. "She's much more likable than Ren, she's strongly allied with the girls on the other team – that's dangerous in a merge. And plus, it'll be easier to get rid of Ren in the future than Kylie. We may not get a chance like this again."

"I thought our targets were Eyrik and Ren?" Orion shot back at her. "That's what Danny said this morning. He said our targets were Eyrik and Angry Ren."

"Well, Danny doesn't call all of the shots," Bliss muttered. "We can't let him, you know? He isn't on our team. We need to watch out for ourselves first, and his interests later."

As Ren hobbled into the mess hall, Bliss whispered, "Put your feelings aside, lover man. If we don't strike, they will."

Bliss stood up and blew a kiss to Orion, and then to Ren, before leaving the mess hall, closing the door behind her. Ren took her empty seat and a sandwich from the plate on the table. "Hey, man," he said, biting into it. "Guys' Alliance meeting or what?"

_Or what,_ Orion thought to himself. "Guys' Alliance meeting," was what he told Ren.

Ren nodded darkly. "Listen, you're in trouble."

"Tell me something I don't know. You're in trouble, too."

"Tell me something I don't know." Both boys chuckled humorlessly; if there was one thing they could bond over, it was their dark sense of humor.

"What's more important?" Orion questioned.

Ren rolled his eyes. "Don't go all Sherlock on me, now."

"No, hear me out. What's more important – this alliance, or our other alliances? Right now, we're all scrambling. We're all saying different things to different people, then making opposite promises behind their backs. It's just, which promises should we keep? Which promises do we break?"

Ren laughed, but there was no humor. "Listen, mister _I'm-going-to-try-to-put-the-whole-game-into-feelings-and-words_, I honestly don't know. I'm seriously tempted to vote you out tonight."

"Same."

"Let's just make one fake promise to each other and then we can go on our merry way, deal?"

"Deal. How about…"

Ren grinned evilly. "Bliss?"

Orion nodded. "Sure, why not?"

***Beach***

Kylie had found a beach chair and was calmly sitting down, trying to relax.

"This damn game is so damn complicated and so damn confusing…" she said to herself with a sigh.

Out of nowhere, someone screamed, "HI THERE!"

Kylie nearly had a heart attack, and she fell out of her chair and onto the sand. Looking up was Maddie grinning widely over her. "Um, hey there," she grumbled as she pulled herself up.

"What's the Girls' Alliance going to do?" Maddie questioned.

In all honestly, in the confusion and frustration of the challenge, Kylie had completely forgotten about the Girls' Alliance and hadn't put much thought into who she was going to vote for. "I don't know, Ren, maybe? Who'd you have in mind?"

"Orion, maybe Bliss," Maddie threw out there. "I definitely want to keep you and Eyrik, though."

Kylie rolled her eyes. "You hit it right on the nose there, Maddie. See, I want to keep Eyrik too – he's made promises to me, mind you – and as useful and resourceful as he is, he messed up today. He can't do puzzles! And that just doesn't sit right with me."

"I trust him, though," Maddie muttered. "Can't say that about too many of the others…"

"I trust him too," Kylie commented. "I trust Orion, too. But he's definitely someone I'm having to consider voting off, too. And Bliss. Bliss isn't a physical player. And Ren. Ren is a liability now, because of his knee. Everything just irks me so damn much! I honestly have no idea who is going and who is staying tonight, but one way or the other, it's going to be a blindside."

_There's no way to feel safe until we find the Immunity Head,_ Maddie thought to herself, feeling the map in her pocket. She was definitely going searching again later. "You sure can say that again…"

***Team Extraterrestrial, Boys' Cabin***

"To Brooke and Christy," Danny called out, leading the toast of their celebration party, "And to their amazing puzzle skills, giving us a victory I thought was impossible!"

**Confessions:**

**Christy: It was so nice for Danny to give us a toast! With this switch and everything, I really feel like I'm part of a cohesive team now. A lot less chaos, that's for certain.**

**Danny: This is the fourth consecutive time I'm not going to elimination. I really feel bad for Bliss – this is her fourth consecutive time _going_ to elimination. But I can't win all of these challenges. I have Christy and Jason right where I want them, and I'm relatively sure with my amnesia Troy won't be making any moves against me either. But after the challenge, I think I should try to get Annalisia on my side as well. The more people that trust me – the better.**

**Annalisia: I got along with D.P. in the challenge today, but there is definitely no way I'm trusting him.**

Danny continued with his toast. "May Team Extravagance have many more victories to come! And thanks once more to Burt and Carl!"

"Burt and Carl?" Christy asked Troy, confused.

The ninja laughed. "Oh, baby," Troy said to her, impersonating Elvis, "Don't worry too much, baby."

Christy laughed; Mickey turned up the stereo they'd pilfered from the mess hall and Jason shouted, "I LOVE THIS SONG!" He started awkwardly dancing, and everyone laughed and joined in.

Troy extended a hand to Christy. "Care to dance, my fair maiden?"

Christy blushed. "I'd love to."

* * *

**Team Extraterrestrial:** Annalisia, Brooke, Christy, Danny, Jason, Troy

**Team StarKid:** Bliss, Eyrik, Kylie, Madeleine, Orion, Ren

**Eliminated:** Jeremiah, John, Lauren, Jada

**Phew, this chapter took quite some time to write. I hope everyone enjoys it! With several different alliances running all over the place, and countless promises made to countless people to vote out countless others, there's no way to know for sure who's going to end up vote out tonight. The only thing that we do know for sure – it's going to be a blindside. Thanks for reading, and please review!**

**Have a Happy New Year's, everyone!**


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